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Rural Handbook; 



CONTAINING 



^ SERIES OP BRIEF AND J^RACTICAL ^SSAYS AND ]^OTES 

ON THE pULTURE OF TrEES, VEGETABLES AND 

Ji'LO'WERS, ADAPTED TO THE PACIFIC 

POAST. y^LSO, JOINTS ON flOME 

AND f^AFtu Improvements. 



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jV 



i- By CHAS. H; SHINN. 

''' "■' ll.h.L&. 



^X ,V 1879. o-^. 



PUBLISHED AND SOLD BY 



Dewey & Co. 

J^UBLISHERS OF THE J^ACIFIC J^URAL JPrESS, 

SAN FHANCISCO. 



COPYRIGHT. 

BY DEWEY & CO., 

Publishers. 
1879. 






.b 



Drwrt & Co., 

AMEUIC.VN AND FOREIGN 
PATKNT AORNTB, 
8. P. 



Preface. 



At the request of my kind friends, the publishers of the 
" Pacific Rural Press," I have written the following brief 
chapters on horticultural, and similar topics. It has been 
my endeavor to realize our climatic conditions, and to avoid 
merely compiled information. 

The task I assumed was to write a book which should 
treat, in an unpretending way, of rural homes, and their 
improvement, of gardens and orchards, of house-plants, 
lawns, and woodlands — all with distinct reference to the 
needs of this coast, and the experience of our farmers, 
orchardists, gardeners, florists, and nurserymen. 

This little volume is a venture into a field which the 
writers of this coast have hitherto carefully avoided. It is 
a hope and a prophecy of the future when all our rural inter- 
ests are to be treated of in pamphlets and books by our own 
writers. We have had poems, political essays, and theological 
discussions, but not, so far as I know of, anything of the 
character of " Rural Essays." Yet this is a land for vines, and 
fruits, and flowers. It is a land whose glowing future nerves 
us to renewed labors as we plant our vacant hill-sides, and re- 
claim our miles of tide-lands. My thoughts go out towards 
California as a region of many homes, and of boufidloss hopes. 
Wherever there are strong toilers who love shade-trees and 
fruitful orchards; wherever busy women or fair children 
know the fragrance of lilies and heliotropes; wherever city 
dwellers long for the country freedom and the happy days of 
youth— there may this little book wander, as a friend and a 
guide, not infallible, but speaking audibly of what we have 
ourselves seen, and have ourselves loved. 

C. H. S. 



CONTENTS. 



Page 
PREFACE 3 

Chapter I.— LAYING OUT THE GROUNDS.— Innate Love of 
Rural Life. — The Pleasantness of Founding a Home. — We can 
Read Men's Characters in their Homes.— Value of Originality. 
— Importance of a well Considered Plan. — Hints on General 
Eflfects and Results , 9 

Ohapter IL— IMPROVING THE SOIL.— Whatever is Taken 
from the Soil must be Restored. — We may even Increase the 
Fertility of Soil. — Otherwise Farming would be a Sad Affair. 
Thorough Cultivation. — Rotation of Crops. — Wasteful Methods 
of many California Farmers. — Commercial Manures.— Barn- 
yard Manures. — Composting, — Alkali Soils. — Adobe Soils. — 
Sandy Soils 15 

Chapter III.— IRRIGATION.— The Object one of Great Import- 
ance. — Need of Better Legislation. — Water, the Property of 
the People. — Examples of Successful Irrigation. — Value of 
our Mining Experience. — Sources from which Water is Ob- 
tained. — Methods of Lifting Water. — Artesian Wells. — How to 
Use Water, when Obtained. — Winter Irrigation.— Examples 
ot its Use. — Irrigation in Lombardy, and elsewhere. — A Gov- 
ernmental System Needed here Also 20 

Chapter IV.— WIND-BREAKS AND HEDGES.— Benefits to be 
Derived from a Use of Wind-breaks. — Kinds most Popular. — 
Other Valuable Varieties.— The Best Way to Procure Trees 
in Large Quantities. — Hedge Plants for Fences. — The Plants 
Adapted to our Climate. — The Value of Low Boundaries, for 
Ornamental Purposes, — Shrubs which may be Used. . . . , 27 

Chapter V.— FRUIT TREES AND SMALL FRUITS.- Cali- 
fornia's Leading Industry. — Orchards : where to Plant them. 
— Treatment, Pruuing, &c. — A List of Fifty Trees, for a 
Family Orchard. — Leading Market, Drying, and Canning 
Varieties. — Small Fruits. — Their Culture, and Best Kinds 
Known 34 



6 CONTENTS. 

Page 
Chapter VI.— SHADE TREES.— Universal Love of Shade 

Trees. — Their Measureless Beauty. — My Friend who Uses 
too many Evergreens. — The proper Use of Conifers, and the 
most Desirable Kinds. — How to Transplant Evergreens. — 
Deciduous Trees. — Their Great Variety, and Place in Land- 
scape Gardening.— Leading Varieties. — Nut-bearing Shade 
Trees. — Trees with Tropical Foliage. — The Weeping Trees. — 
Ancestral Oaka 41 

Chaptbr VIL— SHRUBS.— The Value of Shrubs.— Their Easy 
Culture, and Clustered Memories. — Shrubs for each Season. — 
Deciduous and Broad-leaved Shrubs. — Diseases, Treatment, 
and Method of Training 47 

Chapter VIII.— THE VEGETABLE GARDEN.— Farmers ought 
to Raise more Vegetables. — Different Ways of Laying out a 
Garden. — The Combination System. — General Culture and 
Treatment. — The Tools Needed. — Notes on the best Veget- 
ables. — Birds in the Garden 51 

Chaptek IX.— flower GARDEN AND LAWN.— Lord Bacon's 
Remark. — The Universality of Gardens.— Their Infinite Var- 
iety. — The Time when our Gardening Calendar properly 
Begins. — Autumn Work.— Our Californian Winter, and the 
Happy Awakeuing of the Flowers. — Gardens must be Perm- 
anent, kept Clein, and full of Fragrance and Gifts. — How to 
Lay Out a Garden. — Plans, Walks, advisable Flowers, and 
Edgings. -Roses. — Garden Statuary.— Concerning Rock- work. 
—Aquatic Gardens. — Lawns, — Beds Cut in the Lawn. — The 
Enemies of the Garden and Lawn 57 

Chapter X.-SEEDS, AND SEED PLANTING.— The Way 
Plants Grow. — Some of the Curious Things about Seeds. — 
Sowing of Flower Seeds. — Preparation of Soil. — Planting, 
and Covering. — Tree and Shrub Seeds. — The Critical Periods : 
Subsequent Treatment. -The Three Enemies.— The Delight of 
Success , 69 

Chapter XL— CUTTINGS.— Nature Provides for many Ways of 
Increase. — Plants may be Grown from Cuttings, Slips, or 
Pipings.— Nurseryman, Florist, and Gardener, depend on this 
System. — The ease with which some People Start Cuttings. — 
The Difficulties of Others. — The Practical Divisions of Soft- 
wood, ilard-wood, Leaf, and Root Cuttings. — Each one, con- 
sidered Separately. — Closing Hints. — Layers, and the Prob- 
able First Suggestions of Layering 76 



contents. 7 

Page 
Chabter XII.- window PLANTS, HANGING BASKETS, 

AND FEBNERIES.— Conservatory Gardens: The Highest 
Type.— A Love of Flowers in the Homes of the Poor.— How 
to Make Window-boxes.— What Plants to Use, and how to 
take Care of them.— House Plants, for Winter and Summer.— 
Hanging Baskets, how to Make, and how to Keep in Order. — 
The Best Plants for Baskets. — Ferneries and Jardinieres: 

Treatment, and Suitable Plants 83 

Chapter XIII.— A SMALL GREENHOUSE.— The Comfort of 
having a little Greenhouse.— Early Enthusiasm.— Changeable- 
ness of many Greenhouse Owners. — Their Frequent Failures. 
—The Mournful Tale of a Friend.— The First Rule is not to 
Grow too many Kinds.- The Second Rule is to give Constant 
Attention. — Liquid Manure. — Potting Plants. — Watering.- 
Hanging Baskets. — Autumn Work. — A Digression concerning 
Mangoes. — Begonias. — Other Greenhouse Plants 91 

Chapter XIV.— OUR HORTICULTURAL FUTURE.— Enthus- 
iasm in some Degree Pardonable. — Our Latent Resources. — 
We need not Despond. — The Wide Meaning of Horticulture. — 
The Impression which a Florist's Establishment would make 
on a Savage. — Horticultural Development of the Last Half 
Century.— Its Refining Influence. — This is an Age of Homes. 
— The Work of Botanist and Nurseryman. — New Plants to be 
Discovered.— The Gradual Increase of Horticultural Senti- 
ments. — What America may Bejcome. — The New Eden. — 
What is Possible here in California .—The Temple of our 
State 99 

Chapter XV.— HOMES, AND HOME-LIFE.— The Central 
Thought of this Book. — For the Sake of our Children, we 
should have Beautiful Homes. — The Barrenness of too many 
Farm-houses. — The first Necessity of a Home. — Woman's 
Work in the Garden.—Books. — ThQir Value. — How to Buy 
Books. — Books of Reference.— Books for a Family Library. — 
Newspapers. — Pictures, and Picture Frames. — The Expense 
of Home Adornment Considered. — A Plea in its Behalf. .107 



TABLES OF DESIRABLE PLANTS. 

Table L— Desirable Deciduous Shrubs 117, 118 

" II.— Desirable Evergreen Shrubs 118, 119 

" III.— Climbing Plants of Value 119, 120, 121 

" IV.— Aquatic Plants 122 




CALIFORNIA ORANGES. 



Chapter I. 

LAYING OUT THE GROUNDS. 




Innate Love of Rural Life. — The Pleasantness of 
Founding a Home. — We can Read Men's Char- 
racter In their Homes. — Value of Originality. — 
Importance of a well Considered Plan. — Hints 
on General Effects and Results. 

HOEVER, in this fair State of ours, has become the 
\ fortunate owner of a little nook of land which, by 
patient and well directed toil, may be changed from a waste 
to a garden, must feel in some degree as if he were the 
master of a new and glorious world. There lie the fresh and 
smoking furrows, smiling to think of the countless secrets 
they hide — the fruit and leaves and flowers, the shaded walks 
and the sloping lawns ; there the new master plans in faith 
and patience for the golden years of a long and useful life. 
The founding of a homo is one of the purest joys left to 
fallen man ; it is the blessing which came softly out of Para- 
dise with Adam, and has followed his wandering children 
ever since. 

In this desire for rural homes the perenfiial freshness of 
humanity is revealed. As every successive generation of 
children love to pull corn-silk, and tumble in the hay-fields, 
so every generation of busy, over-worked men — lawyers, pol- 
iticians, merchants, editors — love to unfasten the chafing 
harness at times, and choose some happy spot, by the 
rippling streams, where they may be new Adams received 

again into Paradise— new dwellers in Arcadia. Our modern 
1 



10 PACIFIC EUKAL HANDBOOK 

intense life draws men, in early manhood, to the centres of 
activity, where fortunes and reputations are to be won ; but 
their hearts, as they grow older, turn back to the grassy 
fields, the blooming gardens, the quiet heath, the country 
freedom, and they remember, with deeper affection, the old 
farm-house of their boyhood, the fragrant garden, and the 
fruitful orchard. Then that saving, long dormant love of 
the brown, friendly earth asserts itself ; and so, in due time 
there is a home j)lanted, and grounds, large or small, to be 
laid out. 

And first, it is on the whole a x^leasant task to make plans 
for a new home, to lay out the grounds and to plant trees, 
shrubs, and flowers. Although little plans sometimes fail, 
and workmen cannot be trusted with everything, and years 
may bo required for complete success, yet it is usually much 
better to take a vacant lot, or a rather neglected farm, and 
improve to suit yourself, than to pay fancy j)rices for 
orchards and gardens, which grow so fast in our climate. A 
farmer may, on account of nearness to water, or commanding 
position, be compelled to build his own house nearly where 
the old one was ; but no minor question should ever prev^it 
the choice of the absolutely best jjoint attainable. The essen- 
tials of a comfortable home are good soil, good water, and 
beautiful location. Beautiful scenery, varied surfaces, and, 
if j)ossible, a glimpse of the ocean, or a river, add much to 
the value of a location ; nearness to market, and social ad- 
vantages, are very imi^ortant ; but every hope of success 
depends primarily upon the character of the soil, and on the 
rainfall, or facilities for irrigation. 

Men have a curious habit of stamping their personality on 
the clothes they wear, the team they drive, the house they 
live in, and all their property, real or personal. In a most 
complete sense the grounds a man lays out, takes care of, 
and enjoys, become like himself, or rather, in a very precise 
way, give us glimj)ses of his nature, and hints of his possibili- 
ties. Indeed I love to notice the constant changes and little 
improvements in every village through which I pass, and 
make wondering guesses concerning the owners of each sue- 



DF HOBTICUIiTUEE AND GAEDENING. 11 

cessive cottage. Altheas, lilacs, a damask rose, groups of 
pansies, and clambering wealth of sweet peas, with perhaps 
a sugar maple, e^vidently cherished — it is in some way a sug- 
gestion of a New England family. An Irish yew tree by the 
gate, a row of black currants along the fence, Shropshire 
damsons and Kentish cherries in the orchard, box borders, 
and Covent Garden stocks, — this is staid, portly old England, 
surely. Bottle gourds over the well, balsams and crape 
myrtle by the door, melons and gumbo in the vegetable 
garden — here is a picture from the sunny South. Dill, 
safifron, yellow marigolds, sunflowers, and horse-beans, in 
straight tows in front of a door painted red, yellow and blue 
— this can only be a Portuguese family from the Azores. It 
is the charm of California in the eyes of her children that so 
many variations are possible here, so many widely different 
types of gardening succeed, and blend harmoniously in our 
landscapes. 

Secondly, therefore, I would impress originality, alike 
ujDon the young householder planning his first home, and 
on the busy farmer, who has probably sold out, and bought 
again, a dozen times during his life. The best and happiest 
plan to be found elsewhere ought to have some modification 
to suit the place, or the owner. Indeed there is little hope 
for you without a lively discontent with other men's plans. 
If you have in your nature the capacity of founding a beauti- 
ful home, you shall search volumes of landscape gardening, 
and find nothing fit to accept without change. A few great 
principles must always guide you, and suggestions from 
numberless sources must unite in your mind before you 
realize the difficulties of the work and the happiness of a 
successful result. You will not ever be able to say that your 
work is well done in the sense in which an artist s[)oaks of a 
picture as finished when it loaves the easel, for vou' will 
always be haunted by growing and boundless possibilities; 
but when your ideas are broadly planned, and fulfilled to the 
earliest fruit and shade, we may safely speak of results. 

The most important question to be settled at first, is, how 
much of the land surrounding the house is to be devoted to 



12 PACiriO EUEAli HANDBOOK 

ornamentals, liow much to fruit, and how much to out-build- 
ings? Or, to put this in another form, what proportion shall 
the shrubs, flowers, and trees, bear to the whole space avail- 
able ? The answer to this question will depend somewhat 
on the state of a man's purse, but more on his feelings in the 
matter, since, by choosing fruit and nut-bearing trees, the 
poorest man may afiford to surround his house with shade 
and beauty. Some styles of architecture, as the Italian villa, 
seem to require more foliage around them than others, so 
that this proportion ought really to be settled with some 
reference to the plan of the house. 

More than a few good people have a theory that it is only 
necessary to begin work, and a successful plan will evolve 
itself — the buildings, paths, and beds, will assume the best 
positions by a series of fortunate accidents; thus, it is also 
believed, an air of simplicity and naturalness will be secured. 
But this plausible theory is a delusion. No place will ever 
be satisfactory if the plan is allowed to drift helplessly 
according to circumstances; for paths will take undirected 
curves, scattered beds will fail to have unity of effect, choice 
trees will be crowded in, without any view to the future, con- 
tinual change will be needed, and a wreck on the rocks of con- 
fusion will probably end the unguided endeavor. It is best, 
therefore, to fully understand what you propose to do. The 
general plan must be well considered, and, on all important 
matters, settled, before a tree is planted. Haste here will 
prove to have been sowing a large crop of future repentance. 
Of course minor changes are admissible; but a definite, vital, 
and organized plan will need few alterations. 

The next step is to find out all you can about your soil 
and climate, and, taking the best works obtainable, to make 
lists of suitable trees, shrubs, and plants. Make it much 
longer than you expect to use at first. Go and see fine plants 
at the leading nurseries, and on private grounds. If you 
want anything which you cannot procure from your own 
nurserymen, tell them so, and they will jDrobably jDrocure it 
the next season. Try to realize how each tree you think of 
using will look when it is fully grown. Beautiful grounds 



OF HOBTICULTUEB AND GARDENING. 13 

are only to bo obtained by knowing beforehand nearly what 
effect will bo produced, so that, whilst others are suri^rised, 
the quiet owner is only justified in his own thoughts by the 
fulfilled, but long foreshadowed, landscape. 

This art of grace'ful combinations is the hardest, yet love- 
liest, of garden problems. The trees and plants of any 
country harmonize perfectly with each other when in their 
native woods, but our eagerness for new things, and our 
thirst for variety, often leads us to mingle the plants of every 
region on one poor half acre. The possibilities of artistic 
landscape-gardening which our climate afi'ords, are wonder- 
ful, but the dangers also are great. Our native lilies, shrubs, 
and spicy vines, are perfectly at home near a drooping red- 
wood, or mountain pine, but they have little sympathy with 
a Eucalyptus, other than the mere vegetable kinship. 
Plants, in themselves beautiful, maybe, and often are, a pos- 
tive injury to a garden, because they introduce an inhar- 
monious idea in outline, style, or color. No man should 
ever buy a plant merely because of a vague impression that 
it is cheap, or pretty, or can be utilized somewhere; but he 
ought to know beforehand exactly where to put it, and exactly 
what he expects it to do in the way of harmonious effect. 
Neither should any man expect to buy all the different 
species which are for sale at the nurseries, any more than he 
desires to wear all the new styles of cravat on one occasion. 

It is always desirable to grade the ground before any trees 
are planted, so that there are no little depressions where 
water will stand after a long rain. Do not try to produce a 
dead level, but uniform slopes, preserving the salient features 
of the location. This grading process is essential if much 
irrigation is proposed. By studying the surface carefully 
after a heavy rain the work can be done reasonably well with- 
out expensive surveying. 

In arranging for the general plan it is best to avoid a car- 
riage-road passing in a circle around the house, for the privi- 
lege of possessing your back-door in privacy is not one to be 
lightly cast away. Those straight roads which pass from the 
main gate, and go inflexibly to the stable, are only allowable 



14 PACIFIC EUBAL HANDBOOK 

on tke plea of saving ground. Straight walks and rows of 
trees increase the sense of length, whilst curving walks and 
masses of shrubbery tend to diminish it. Tall trees aj^pear 
best near the middle of grounds, or forming a background 
for buildings. Trees with feathery, graceful leaves ought to 
stand where their outlines are revealed against the sky. 
Dark and massive trees give force and stability to the land- 
scape. The weeping trees add the sad minor key_. Columnar 
trees should rise from masses of enveloping shrubbery. 
Trees with red Avinter-berries, as the mountain ash, and 
holly, show well among deciduous trees. Each tree should 
have room to develop its true character, and must not be tor- 
tured, by too much j^runiDg, into a stiff and ungainly satire 
upon itself. Numerous hints of this kind may be given, but we 
can sum them all up in two j)recept3: " So plan your grounds 
that they will form one harmonious whole." ** Give your 
grounds a positive character, suitable in general to the age 
we live in, and the climate we enjoy, and, in particular, to 
the house you have built, and your own individual tastes." 
Full directions for planting trees, shrubs, etc., with lists of 
leading kinds, will be found in subsequent chapters. 

The man who chooses his nook of earth, and founds a 
homo there, is justly entitled to that too often bestowed title of 
*' public benefactor." The tired travellers, plodding wearily 
along the dusty summer road, look gladly on the waving 
si)ires of green, the soft, bright grass, the cool fountains, the 
flashes of color from the well-kept beds, the bending and 
fruitful boughs, and they are made more hopeful by all this 
beauty and repose. It is, for the owner, a daily blessing, and 
the hallowed memories of homo cluster thickly, as the years 
increase. 

The voices of happy children, some of them no longeron 
earth, and thus eternally young, yet seem to echo beneath 
the arching trees, which his own hands i^lanted long before. 
The blue-bolls, and the violets, the fragrant lilies, and the 
imssion-hearted roses — these carry his dreams back to his 
boyhood, and move his soul to tears. The impulse which 
led him to found a home is iustified. 



Chapter II. 
IMPROVING THE SOIL. 



Whatever is Taken from the Soil must be Restored. 
— We may even Increase the Fertility of Soil. — 
Otherwise Farming would be a Sad Affair. — 
Thorough Cultivation. — Rotation of Crops. — 
Wasteful Methods of many California Farmers. 
— Commercial Manures. — Barnyard Manures. — 
Composting. — Alkali Soils. — Adobe Soils. — 
Sandy Soils. 

v]wO SOIL * tliafc I know of in California, or Lave heard of 
^2)3 anywhere else, is perfect enough to warrant our using 
it without in some way restoring the elements lost. A man 
can no more take materials, which make j)lants grow, from his 
soil, without impoverishing it, than he can take money con- 
tinually from a lessening jDurse. So much plant-food, nature, 
through the lapse of ages, concentrated in our fertile valleys; 
so much, to some definite ajipreciable amount, each one of 
our crops requires; and when it is marketed the chemical 
resources of our soil are by so much the poorer. Nature's 
system, in which plants withered where they grew, wasted 
nothing; l3ut now her sceiDtre is given to men, who have too 
often used it foolishly. The system which breaks up virgin 
soil, rich with the sediment of nameless rivers, and the wash 



16 PACIFIO KUBAIi HANDBOOK 

of pre'historic mountains, to destroy its fertility by a con- 
tinued course of wholesale robbery, is only to be classed 
with the operations of savages, not of civilized men. On the 
contrary, a true and enlightened system of restorative agri- 
culture lies at the root of all progress, and is the very life of 
a nation. 

The experience of thoughtful tillers of the soil, and the 
results of scientific investigation, alike tell us that it is pos- 
sible to keep soil for generations in its pristine fertility, and 
even to add to its capacity for high culture. If it were other- 
wise, the outlook of our race would be sad in the extreme, as 
our harvests waned, our cities perished, our arts disappeared; 
but, as it is, we may toil in the full knowledge that, with 
proper treatment, land once fertile is always so. The fairest 
valleys of earth shall lose none of their beauty as the years 
roll by. No roof-tree, hung with long and sweet memories, 
need over fall because the ancestral acres are worn out. Even 
the classic lands, and those earlier cradle-homes of the race, 
shall, it may be, renew their youth in some later system of 
agriculture, and men see once more the vines of Judea, the 
olives of Greece, the palms of Mesopotamia. 

It is a good thing for men that they can accomplish so 
many valuable results in farming without altogether under- 
standing the processes they have set in motion. The soil we 
cultivate is a chemical laboratory, which does wonderful 
things for us if we will only follow the beginnings, and give 
it half a chance; the seeds we sow are little bundles of cells, 
and fibres, and forces which no man has yet measured, — but 
they grow by force of nature, and make no fuss about it. 
Because a farmer is face to face with so many questions, and 
so near to some of the secrets of life, ho ought to be modest, 
deliberate, and full of the Divine patience; one who can and 
will keep his soil fertile for his great, great grandchildren, 
and who is willing to plant oaks to cradle the breezes of a 
thousand years. 

Thorough cultivation is the first means of preserving the 
fertility of land, for air and sunlight modify the harsher 
elements of the soil, and make it fitter for the use of plants. 



OF HORTICULTURE AND GARDENING. 17 

We all know how unfit for use the earth from a well, or a 
heavy subsoil appears, until changed by the action of wind, 
sun, and rain. In this State, with our long, dry summers, 
the value of thorough cultivation cannot be over-estimated. 
It is our sheet-anchor for the cereals, fruits, vegetables, and 
flowers. Ground must be ke^^t mellow, and free from weeds, 
which last, if they drive a lazy man to his cultivator, have a 
clear right to exist. 

A system of rotating crops will always be necessary to 
good farming. I notice with much pleasure that farmers who 
rent their lands require it more and more. In the Pajaro 
valley, leases are often given for three years, requiring the 
renter to put in not less than one-third in green crops, each 
year. The smaller a piece of ground is the more religiously 
should its crops be rotated. In the vegetable garden, peas, 
beans, and melons, after root-crops; in the orchards, if an old 
apple tree dies, try to put a peach, cherry, or almond in its 
place, unless, indeed, the whole orchard, being moss-grown 
and fruitless, is rooted out, the place seeded to wheat, and a 
new orchard planted elsewhere. 

For restoring and improving the soil, fertilizers of some 
sort must be used; and this question opens up a vast subject, 
discussed in many large and costly volumes. It is not my 
intention to cite formulas and chemical analyses, but a few 
principles ought to be expressed. Nitrogen, x^otash, and 
phosphoric acid, are the essential plant-elements which we 
must aim to supply, and these are all found in barnyard 
manure, which, if produced on the farm, is doubtless the 
most economical. The commercial manures — South Caro- 
lina phosphates, Stookbridge comj^ound, blood-and-bono fer- 
tilizer, and others, when obtained under the manufacturer's 
warranty, are profitable, if applied understandingly. Still, 
for some years to come, the great need of California farming 
and California gardening is to utilize all our own coarser and 
native manurial substances, whose loss, if it is not stopped, 
will eventually impoverish us. I have seen farmers haul 
loads of manure into the dry bed of the Salinas river, so that 
the winter floods might sweep it away, and I have known 



18 PAOiriO EURAL HANDBOOK 

men to move their sheds rather than haul off the manure; 
but the most unedifjing waste of ten occurs on hill-side farms, 
where the entire drainage from the barnyard is lost, for lack 
of a ditch and small reservoir. Indeed I speak within bounds 
when I say that not over a dozen farmers of my acQuaintanoe 
scrupulously utilize all the fertilizers within their reach. 

Barnyard manure, well kept and well handled, ought to 
contain from three to six jjer cent, of nitrogen, from four to 
six and a half per cent, of jjotash, and from two to three per 
cent, of iDhosphoric acid. In our climate manure ought to 
be in t'he field before the first rains. Every gardener ought 
also to have a pile on which he i^uts refuse vegetables, roots, 
trimmings of plants, weeds, leaves, defunct animals, and all 
decayable substances. The pile, once begun, grows so fast, 
that no man, though he farm his hundreds of acres, can 
afford to neglect it. It should be turned over and wet com- 
pletely now and then, to. assist decay. No better manure can 
be made for garden plants. 

The class of phosphate-manures are represented by bones. 
In some parts of California, a farmer could collect quite a 
pile, and prej)are his own phosphates. A ton of bones is 
worth at least $20 to any man who expects to use them, in the 
form of phosphates, applied to his crops. Any farmer can dis- 
solve ground or broken bones by the use of sulphuric acid, 
which he must not get on his clothes; or bones can be broken 
in a common mortar, or Mexican arastra, and used in that 
state, though it will be much longer biefore they are avail- 
able. There is, however, a form of composting which jjos- 
sesses many advantages. If the bones are broken up, and 
mixed with a pile of fresh stable manure, wet down, and the 
whole covered with a thin coating of earth, to retain the 
ammonia, the bones will decompose in from three to six 
months. Hair, leather, wool, and horn-scraps, need the 
same treatment. If wood-ashes are added to the compost, 
the process will be hastened, and potash will be added to the 
manure. 

If we will take a lump of dry, hard clay, and burn and 
pulverize it, we shall see a wonderful change in color, con- 



OF HORTICULTURE AND GAEPENINGL 19 

sistencj, and adai^tability to plant-life. Fire has subdued 
the harsher elements, and made others more available. Now 
the florist likes to take this burnt earth, for ho knows its 
value. Ho also takes loam, sand, decayed leaves — all these, 
mingled in the best jjroportions to make rich, friable soil. 
On a large scale that is what a man is doing witli his farm — 
trying to modify, enrich, and complete. Small garden 
patches of stiff soil are ameliorated by a coating of sand, and 
by burning over the surface occasionally, with a coating of 
straw. 

Our alkali soils, cold and unproductive, have been a hard 
problem. In many cases the use of gypsum has proved a 
complete remedy. Our State University ijublished a Bul- 
letin on the subject, last year. Many experiments and inves- 
tigations yet remain to be made before the subject is fully 
understood, but it is much to know that we can, at a mode- 
rate expense, neutralize the alkalies of some soils, at least. 

To return again to the subject of fertilizers. The profits 
of farming consist in changing our waste matters and crude 
phosphates and nitrogens into golden wheat, and ruddy 
winter apjiles, or, to still more condense our products, into 
beef and butter. Some farmers want to dishonorably kick a 
crop out of their long-suffering land; but now and then we 
find a man who coaxes his farm, and pays all he honestly 
owes it, and the broad xicres never fail him. An old horse 
turned out to die; an old farm, weedy, and exhausted; a 
blear-eyed drunkard by the roadside — these are mournful 
things, with a certain subtle relationship of sorrow, forlorn 
and hopeless. 

California may well become the world's granary ; but even 
our young wheat-fields falter, and their yield decreases. Are 
we, indeed, by special enactment^ made exempt from the law 
of the Universe, and freed from its mighty penalties? Shall 
conversion of Force, and conservation of Energy, be solemn 
facts for all other peoples, and for us only myths ? 



Chapter III. 

IRRIGATION. 



The Object one of Great Importance. — Need of 
Better Legislation. — Water, the Property of the 
People. — Examples of Successful Irrigation. — 
Value of our Mining Experience.- — Sources from 
which Water is Obtained. — Methods of Lifting 
Water. — Artesian Wells. — How to Use Water, 
when Obtained. — Winter Irrigation. —Examples 
of its Use. — Irrigation in Lombardy, and else- 
where. — A Governmental System needed here 
also. 

fOR many years to come the subject of irrigation will be 
of the greatest importance to the people of this coast. 
If unscrupulous monopolies are not allowed to make x^rivate 
proi)erty of that which the State only should i30ssess, wo 
shall, in the course of time, j^erfect a vast and accurate 
system of retaining the surplus of our mountain streams, of 
distributing it during dry seasons, and of restoring and in- 
creasing the fertility of our soils. The kind of irrigation 
which is going to benefit our State most, will be the work of 
thousands of earnest and patient men who will utilize a little 
water here, and a little there, doing all their work cheaply, 
under their own supervision, and under general irrigation 
laws at once comprehensive and practical. There are many 
places in the coast range, and in the Sierras, where small 
streams or springs can be used^ and cheap reservoirs made to 
guard against the evils of a dry season. On the utilizing of 
all these sources, small separately, but large in the aggre- 
gate, dej)ends in a great measure our future prosperity. 

The artificial ai^plication of water to growing crops is a 
practice which comes from a dateless antiquity. Running 
water, so fall of minute j^articles of vegetable and animal 



HOBTICULTUEE AND GARDENING. 21 

matter, hold in suspension, and fit for plant-food, has always 
been considered the most important of fertilizing agents. 
This applies with peculiar force to the warmer regions of the 
earth, where water — running water — is, of itself, when used 
wisely, sufficient to preserve fertility unimpaired, and even 
increased, for generations. The banks of the Nile, twice 
overflowed, and the fertile plains of Lombardy, watered from 
reservoirs kept full by the molting snows and mountain 
streams, are full of instruction for California. The engineer- 
ing difficulties met and conquered by our hydraulic miners, 
as they carried large bodies of water over deep ravines, 
through tunnels, and along the face of precipices, will be of 
priceless value in the coming era of irrigation. We have old 
miners — many of them — who know water, practically speak- 
ing, and can do almost anything with it. These men, and 
the lessons of the mines, will repay our careful study. 

If any reader has ever felt the need of more water on 
orchard, vegetables, grass, alfalfa, or any crop whatever — 
and who has not at some time felt such a need ? — let him 
bestir himself and carefully cast about for a remedy, more or 
less efficient. The means available will be either running 
streams, ponds or lagoons, springs, wells, either artesian or 
surface, or catchment reservoirs, which merely store up the 
rainfall. 

Water fr6m running streams is far better for irrigation 
than that from wells; and, in the mountains, it is not usually 
difficult to get fall enough to carry the water to the desired 
spot. To have water deliver itself by its own gravity is the 
perfection of irrigating; but where this cannot be done, and 
some way of lifting must be found, the question of expense 
is to be considered carefully. With a large, flowing stream, 
where the distance is not excessive, enough water for a 
garden may be lifted by means of a water-wheel and buckets, 
such as are often used in the mines, to drain a portion of a 
river channel. Where it is desired to raise water quite a 
distance, the hydraulic ram is worth study. It is only 
effective where there is some fall, and it lifts only a small 
part of the whole stream; still, as it works night and day with 



22 PAOIflC RURAIi HANDBOOK 

intermittent pulsations, a tank will soon be filled. I have seen 
several hydraulic rams, and the cheapness and simplicity of the 
contrivance recommends it where the conditions are favorable. 

But in most cases water must be pumped from rivers, 
ponds, or wells, and it takes the most careful reckoniug to 
find the cheapest way. Wind-power, horse- power, steam- 
power — one of these three we must use. Where there is 
enough wind the cheapness of a home made wind-mill, and 
its slight running expense, give it a great advantage. Along 
our windy coast, and on our breezy slopes, the lesson of 
Holland — land of wind-mills — will never be outgrown. 
Where there is no certainty about winds, steam is the 
cheapest agent. 

At present the public attention is strongly turned towards 
artesian wells. When wo consider the structure of our 
mountain chains, and strata of rock, and notice the altitude 
of these mountains, we cannot doubt that artesian wells will 
succeed in many places hitherto untried. A flowing artesian 
well is of great value, everywhere, and brings the cost of 
water down to the mere interest on the expense of boring the 
well. It is to be hoped that many will be successfully dug, 
and that we shall become as famous for our artesian wells ns 
for our orange- groves and orchards. In a neighborhood 
where the conditions appear favorable it would seem best for 
the farmers to unite and bore one in common, the person on 
whose land it is, agreeing to pay a larger share if it succeeds. 

If water, more or less, can be obtained, the way to num- 
berless difficulties is only just opened. If the stream of 
water you have in control be too small it will trickle and 
creep from i)oint to i^cint, or lose itself in crevices and holes, 
until you seem to make no advance whatever. If the stream 
is large, and caiDable, it will, at some unexpected moment, 
cut or undermine a bank, or go where it is not wanted. Only 
some experience, and a careful study of your soil, so as to 
know how much water it needs, can make irrigation a com- 
plete success and i^leasure. 

There are, however, a few leading and precious principles 
respecting the use of water for irrigation, and the first of 



OP HORTICUIiTUEE AND GARDENING. 23 

these is: When you water, whether in field or garden, do it 
thoroughly,— not a mere perfunctory surface work, but a 
complete soaking; second, loosen the surface when it begins 
to look dry; third, do not water any more till there is an 
absolute need for it. In alluvial soils, either strike a deep 
furrow, and run the water in that, let it soak well, and in a 
few days fill up the furrow, or else level the land in squares, 
and flood one at a time. Our red lands seem to be much 
more porous, and the water goes down fast enough. It takes 
a great deal of water to wet a i)iece of land thoroughly. Any 
one who has cut hay, in any ordinary season, plowed the 
land, and, after wetting, put in corn or beans, will remember 
how much work it was. But the possibilities of water lie in 
just that direction. Two crops a year, as compared with one, 
may sometimes mean the difference between a bare living and 
a comfortable competence. But two crops a year is an urgent 
call for the use of manures, and this must not be neglected. 
Vegetables are seldom over- watered. "With most kinds, as 
lettuce, turnips, &c., a rapid, succulent growth is much to 
be desired. When the garden is watered often, the little 
channels may be left from time to time, and when they be- 
come dry, water again, instead of loosening the surface. The 
stream of water should be carried close to the roots of what- 
ever needs wetting, and not in the middle of the row, unless 
it is a very narrow space. 

In our State, winter irrigation is of the greatest value, 
and often insures a large and profitable yield. The stored-up 
surplus of a wet winter will bridge the farmer over the fol- 
lowing season, should it prove to be dry. In order to secure 
a full yield, we need a rainfall of about twenty inches; and 
if this can be had, a crop is reasonably secure. But if in u 
wet season we have tliirty-fivo or forty inches of rainfall, and 
the surplus can be retained against futura need, it will so 
supplement a light rainfall of eight or ten inches, the next 
year, as to secure an average crop. 

Now this storing up of supplies would appear to be a 
troublesome business; but, all over our farming counties, 
there are creeks which descend from the mountains, carrying 



24 PACtPlO. HTJBAIi HANDBOOK 

torrents of water during the winter, and lying grim, silent, 
full of a forlorn desolation, through the long summer 
months. The expenditure of a comparatively small sum will 
carry this water upon the level lands, or along the cultivated 
slopes, enriching the soil, and thoroughly moistening it. 
Time and time again our farmers have proved the value of 
this winter use of water, as a safeguard against dry seasons. 

In Stanislaus Co., the Messrs. Crow, near the Orestimba 
creek, flood several thousand acres of their best lands every 
winter. The stream is a large mountain torrent, flowing 
from the coast range, dry through the summer, but in winter 
full to overflowing. These gentlemen have, for several 
years, acted ujion the theory that farming lands cannot be 
made too wet in winter, and they have been most abundantly 
repaid for their labor. In the winter of 1874 these gentlemen 
flooded lauds which, the following dry season, yielded thirty 
bushels of wheat to the acre, whilst unirrigated lands of a 
similar character failed to give any crop whatever. 

In Washington Township, Alameda Co., the irrigation 
ditch from Niles, across the valley, towards Centreville and 
Alvarado, and now managed entirely by John L. Beard, is a 
marked success for winter use, of some considerable value for 
use in spring, and of little importance, as summer advances, 
and the water supply fails, Mr. Lowrie, and Mr. Brier, 
have always used water from this ditch, largely, for winter 
irrigation of orchard and grain land. The yield, and conse- 
quent profit, have been largely increased by this method. 

Pages might easily be tilled with exami)les of similar 
success attending winter irrigation. The past volumes of 
the '* Rural Press " are full of notes, corresi3ondeuce, and 
items on the subject, all of interest, but too numerous to be 
be quoted here. 

For us, in California, the examples of northern Italy, 
southern France, and India, are of incalculable importance, 
and unmeasurable in value. No success was ever yet, in any 
branch of human labor, obtained without a full knowledge of 
other men's efforts. The fundamental need of dry land 
having been, in all ages, water as a fertilizer, men of earlier 



Ol* HOUTICtJLTUEE AND GAEDENlNG. 25 

races have made endless experiments, and won success, and 
tlie ultimate support of large populations, from arid plains 
and mountainous regions. 

In northern Italy, the extensive system now in use, was 
first organized in very early times, probably about the era of 
the early Norman kings, and whilst the greater part of 
Europe was in a state which verged upon barbarism. Along 
the lower slopes of the Alps there are numerous small lakes, 
which serve as reservoirs, receiving the waters of many little 
rivers and mountain springs. 

A single canal, protected by levees planted with willows, 
receives the waters of each lake, and distributes it, through a 
multitude of lesser, and still lesser channels, to each neigh- 
borhood, village, farm, and little field, within reach. SluicC' 
gates control the water wherever needed, and the surplus 
passes off, by other channels, until it finally reaches the Po 
river, which drains central Lombardy. The larger canals, 
and the main system, supervision, and authority, are govern- 
mental; but some of the smallest side-ditches often belong to 
individual owners. The system of works begun more than 
six hundred years ago, and since continued with all the zeal, 
industry, and good faith of people directly interested, is now 
so nearly perfect that the cost of repairs and supervision is 
comparatively light, and has never been a burdensome tax. 
Through all social, political, and religious changes, this most 
admirable system has continued unmolested, and has made 
northern Italy one of the world's most fruitful regions. 
"Writers upon the method of farming used, with this abun- 
dant supply of water, say that lands are used as rich pastures 
for a number of years, usually about fifteen. By proper use 
of water, the grass is cut at least four times in the year, and 
fed to cattle kept in stalls. At the end of this term of fifteen 
years the grass becomes coarse and innutritions. The sod is 
then plowed up, and wheat, barley, oats, maize, hemp, flax, 
beans, potatoes, and similar crops, follow in a rotation for 
five years, after which the land is again seeded down to 
grass. 

In California we have all the advantages of Lombardy, 



26 PACIFIC HUKAIi HANDBOOK 

except the system of natural lakes. In the place, therefore, 
of these lakes, we must use artificial reservoirs, to hem in 
and retain the surplus waters. Southern France, and India, 
have been in a measure without such lakes, and they have 
solved the problem by earthern walls across the mouth of 
ravines, excavations in level places, and, as in Ceylon, stone 
walled *' tanks," or artificial reservoirs, of great extent. Mr. 
George Davidson, of this coast, has made a most exhaustive 
Eeport on the Governmental Irrigation Works of India, and 
elsewhere. The trained engineers who planned and executed 
the stupendous works of India, have successfully met many 
problems, which we of California, will also have to settle. 
Their failures also, for failures there sometimes were, will be 
of even greater value to us. 

In the near future we can with safety predict that the 
irrigation question will be in a very distinct way the leading 
question before our legislatures and officials. Over our 
waters, and mountain water-sheds, the State must assert and 
maintain its complete control and ownership. It may oven 
be necessary to purchase back water-rights already private, 
and make them again a part of the property of the people as 
a body. Without a most complete ownership, we can in no 
wise inaugurate or carry to a successful termination any 
abiding or comprehensive system of irrigation. We have 
much faith that this will, notwithstanding all difficulties, 
become an accomplished fact, within the lifetime of our 
young men. If California, land of budding powers, and of 
enormous possibilities, shall succeed in utilizing her waste 
waters, in avoiding the ruin of farming lands consequent on 
uncontrolled waste of mining debris, and will thus reclaim 
millions of arid acres, sage-brush lands, slopes of chapparal, 
and seeming desert— if California, and the men of '49, will 
do this, it will be a fact pregnant with hope and interest to 
the world; it will bring us thousands of men, and millions 
of capital; it will found cities, and dot the wide Pacific with 
the sails aud smoke-stacks of our commerce. So let us have 
hope, let us add fact to fact, and success to success; let us 
do work which shall last ten times six hundred years. 



Chapter IV. 

WIND-BREAKS AND HEDGES. 



Benefits to be Derived from a Use of Wind-breaks. 
— Kinds most Popular. — Other Valuable Varie- 
ties. — The Best V/ay to Procure Trees in Large 
Quantities. — Hedge Plants for Fences. — The 
Plants Adapted to our Climate. — The Value of 
Low Boundaries, for Ornamental Purposes. — 
Shrubs which may be Used. 

f/|j?UR whole coast, with perhaps the exception of a few 
aj^ sheltered valleys, is subject to occasional violent winds, 
and often to long continued gales, most severely felt in the 
great central valley of our State, and in those coast valleys 
which open northward. On the Salinas and San Joaquin 
plains, and along many treeless points of the coast, from 
Humboldt to San Diego, are localities almost uninhabitable, 
by reason of the constant winds, which make gardens and 
orchards an impossible luxury. 

The judicious planting of tall and well foliaged trees has 
always been productive of good, and cannot be too strongly 
insisted upon. A shelter of trees around the house breaks 
the winds, ameliorates the climate, saves fuel, and adds 
beauty to the landscape of summer and winter. Trees 
around the stables, make them warmer, and so indirectly 
save a percentage of food. Trees around the orchard and 
garden enable a man to raise more, better, and earlier fruits 
and vegetables. I have noticed the beneficial effects of wind- 
belts near Santa Cruz, Sequel, Aptos, Monterey, Cayucos, 
San Luis Obispo, Lompoc, and numerous other points along 



28 PACIFIC EUBAL HANDBOOK 

the coast, where much has been done by enterprising planters; 
but hardly a beginning has been made in the "wind-swept 
portions of the Salinas valley, along the San Joaquin, and 
on the plains of the Northern Sacramento. Notwithstanding 
our leagues of sugar-pine, fir, and redwood, v/e shall need to 
grow trees for protection, for timber, and for ornament; and 
the interest shown in the subject is truly encouraging. 

In this State, so far, the favorite tree has been the Euca- 
lyptus Globulus, or blue gum, whose adaptability to our 
climate, rapid growth, and evergreen foliage, have given it a 
leading iDlace. There are signs that its supremacy will be 
closely contested by E. Collossea, E. Marginata(Jarrah),and 
others of later introduction. The place of second favorite 
appears to be held by the Monterey cypress, a large conifer, 
which bears close pruning, and thrives on a great yariety of 
soils. Third in popularity comes the Monterey pine, by 
some preferred to the cyjpress, and beyond doubt the easiest 
to transplant of all our modern evergreens. Some of the 
coarser Acadias are used near Morro, but they answer poorly, 
being quite too brittle to withstand the wind. If we tarn to 
deciduoua trees, I have noticed settlers using cottonwooda 
and sycamores from the bottoms, and often the Lombardy 
poplar, with its tower of formal green; still the cork-bark 
elm, which luxuriates here, and the American black walnut, 
are much better. 

It is a grave mistake on the part of our planters that they 
confine themselves so exclusively to a few leading and com- 
mon varieties. Any evergreen tree which grows well in your 
neighborhood, and forms a compact head, is of value in 
itself, and also increases the natural beauty of the vicinity 
far more than the common trees, because that delightful 
element of variety, is introduced. Some monotonous people, 
whom wo have all known, would like to plane down all the 
mountains, divide the soil into regular squares oi 100 acres, 
surround each square with the same number of the same 
kind of trees, and put a square house, with a railing on top, 
exactly in the middle of each farm. But some of us would 
not like to live in that kind of an artificial world. We love 



OF HORTICULTUBE AND GAEDENINOt. 29 

wild places, where the mossy trees bend over the child-like 
waters, and the sunlight trembles through the swaying leaves 
to kiss the rosy Trilliums; we believe in bits of woodland, 
and belts of forest, and wind-breaks that Avind along the 
horizon. 

Those who desire a change from the path of safe monot- 
ony, might plant the tufted Abies Douglassi, the drooping 
Cupressus Lawsoni, the rapidly growing Picea Amabilis, our 
native Thuja Gigantea, the spicy redwood, or the dark 
mountain laurel. They might vary E. Globulus by E. Ros- 
trata, E. Viminalis, or E. Marginata. On hills of drifting 
sand along the ocean— where nothing else thrives— the Pinna 
Pinaster will succeed, binding the sand more firmly, shelter- 
ing the inland farms, and finally yielding a fair amount of 
firewood. This variety has been planted by the million 
along the shores of France and England, and wherever tried 
here grows rapidly, moves well, stands drought, and is reas- 
onably good-looking. For a wind-break of medium height, 
our native holly, known in some sections as the wild cherry, 
is valuable, but the seed must be sown where the trees are 
to stand, for they are hard to move. 

A finer effect may be produced by planting different kinds 
together in harmonizing groups, and winding belts, than by 
using any single variety. Small trees, and even shrubs, are 
then used to fill in between the trunks of the larger trees, and 
give the desired shelter; every variety of blossom and foliage 
is eagerly sought; the effect of outlines is carefully studied, 
and if the belt is several rods in width, it adds a great charm 
to the landscape. 

In our climate the deciduous trees do best when planted 
early, so as to get all the rain. January, and February, are 
the best months for evergreens. Small trees, not over two 
feet high, are preferable. Monterey cypress and blue gum 
are most available when about a foot high, and may be 
planted from six to eight feet apart. They are usually grown 
in boxes, and may be blocked out with a trowel, or large 
knife, and planted like so many cabbages. Walnuts, beeches, 
maples, and similar trees, may well be five or six feet high. 



30 PACIFIC RUBAL HANDBOOK 

when moved. The oaks must all be taken when small. Trees 
desired in large numbers are best procured by making an 
arrangement with some responsible nurseryman, one or more 
years in advance, and letting liim grow them by contract. 
By giving previous notice the trees can be grown at much 
lower rates, and better satisfaction is usually given. Indeed 
many trees cannot be procured in quantity by any other 
course. For instance, if any- one wished to plant a few thou- 
sands of the cedar of Lebanon, or of the Deodar cedar, both 
beautiful and historic trees, Avell adapted to our climate, he 
would find that our- nurserymen only grow a limited number, 
to supply a rather uncertain demand; but they would be very 
glad to grov/ any number to order. 

Hedge Plants, 

There is a propriety of putting* my remarks on hedge 
plants of every description into the same chapter with my 
remarks on wind-breaks, for a hedge is only a sort of dimin- 
utive and refined barrier, where shrubs take the place of 
trees, and the predominant idea is no longer shelter, as in 
the wind-break, but defence, or i)Ossiblo ornament. The 
primary use of a hedge appears to have been that of a defen- 
sive and impassable barrier, not beautiful, but very ferocious; 
and of this type the Nopal, or prickly pear, which we have 
all seen around the old Missions, maybe taken as an example. 
The savage idea of mere defence gave way to a desire of unit- 
ing all possible beauty in the leafy barrier; and the Osage 
orange, hawthorns, Cherokee rose, and similar plants, came 
into use. Finally, and this not until modern times, the idea 
of beauty became predominant, and the hedge, still further 
reduced in size, and having almost entirely lost its defensive 
character, was used tO' bound carriage-ways, and make low 
divisions, wherever we fancied them. Still another modifica- 
tion of the hedge is in the low box dwarf pink. Iris, or Ceras- 
tium, used to surround a garden-bed, or edge a walk. 

A hedge which takes the place of a fence must of course 
be substantial, and decidedly armed. The general opinion 



OF HOBTICULTUBE AND GAEDBNING. 31 

being that thorns are unpleasant, a well grown, compact 
hedge is more of a protection to an orchard than a dozen 
fences, picket or otherwise. Osage orange grows pretty 
large, needs much care, and is subject to gophers. Still, if 
well splashed — that is, each stem cut half way through, and 
laid over in the row, in the same direction, so as to sprout 
up thickly — it is a valuable hedge plant. Use one-year old 
plants, and set them two feet apart. The honey locust is 
thorny enough, but it has not succeeded well in many parts 
of the State, 

The most defensive deciduous shrub we know of, and one 
which appears well adapted to our climate, is the purple- 
leaved barberry, here a much more rapid grower than in the 
East. With us it forms an impassable barrier in a few years, 
is highly ornamental, and the fruit makes a very pleasant 
preserve. It will also last longer than most other hedge- 
plants. The barberry is propagated both by seeds and by 
cuttings. If cuttings are used, take them early in December, 
cut them 18 inches long, with sloping ends, and plant them 
in long rows, packing the earth tightly, at the base of the 
cutting. 

The English furze is a well known and well defended 
plant, which grows rapidly on almost any soil, even where 
alkali abounds. Its chief beauty is during the winter months, 
when it is fairly loaded with masses of large, golden-yellow, 
pea-shaped blossoms, set in the axis of the narrow, dark 
green leaves. It cannot be handled with any particular 
delight even then; but for months no plsmt is more hand- 
Bome. 

Evergreen hedges are preferred by many, and the most 
popular conifer for this purpose is undoubtedly the Monterey 
cypress (C. Macrocarpa) . A few years ago, only large plants 
were used; but now trees of from 8 to 15 inches are pre- 
ferred, as being safer to plant, and much cheaper. Cypress, 
if used for a hedge, must be well trimmed several times in 
the year, or it will never thicken up, and the lower branches 
will in due time die, and fall off, leaving a ragged stem. 
Cypress may be kept at the height of an ordinary fence^ and ' 



32 PAorpia bubal handbook 

made a compact, woven floor of green, or it may be trimmed 
up into a wall of 20 feet height, if desired. 

If we allow the idea of ornament to overshadow that of 
defence, but yet desire hedges around spacious pleasure 
grounds, or to line broad carriage-ways, we shall find it hard 
to surpass the pomegranate, with its pure, dark foliage, 
flaming blossoms, waxen fruit, and compact growth. The 
shrubby lime and lemon are much used in the southern 
half of our State. The recently introduced Jujube plum 
gives promise of value for this kind of work. It must be 
remembered that by using fruit-bearing shrubs for hedges 
we may expect some crop, although not as large as if the 
shrubs were set further apart. 

Leaving the taller hedge plants, to consider those which 
more properly belong to the lawn and pleasure garden, we 
observe that every well kept place calls for interior division 
lines, and neat boundaries, to its different parts. Along the 
side of a flower-plot; hiding the vegetable garden; separating 
the croquet ground, — very often a low hedge is the salvation 
of the landscape gardener. Nor must it be always straight, but 
following gentle curves, and melting slowly into the heavier 
boundary lines. 

The rare possibilities of many shrubs in this direction are 
strangely neglected. Cypress, trimmed close, looks well; 
but some other things look better. Oestrum Aurantiacum, 
with clean foliage, and drooping, fragrant corymbs of yellow 
flowers; the silver, or the golden-leaved Euonymus; shrubby 
roses, all of one color, or mingled; the brilliant dwarf Japan 
quince; double-flowering peach, and almond; Spireas, Wig- 
elias, Deutzias— any of these might be used with i^leasing 
effect. For a very low division line, or around a child's 
garden, the charming little Bourbon or Button rose, is per- 
fectly adapted. The Laurestinus is our finest winter bloom- 
ing shrub. The Japan privet is a fine evergreen, with fragrant 
white flowers, and large, glossy leaves, but it needs close 
trimming. 

The builder of a home, the new Adam in his Eden-work, 
must in this, as in many other things, venture to have the 



OP HOBTICULTUBE AND GARDENING. 33 

courage of his own choice, and the sturdy patience to search 
long for that which is truly fit and truly beautiful. For 
instance, the Diosma Alba (or "breath of heaven"), would 
make a wonderfully nice, low hedge; but who, of all who 
know and love its delicate spicy leaves, and its abundant, 
starry blossoms, has ever tried it in that capacity? And 
what could be better, if in a somewhat shaded place, than a 
row of the choice fuchsias, trained to a hidden trellis, and 
trailing downward as fountains of grace and color? 

Then, lastly, there may be vine-hedges, for backgrounds 
to beds of annuals, or for boundaries. Sweet peas, morning 
glories, or the handsome fringed Tropoelum Lobbii, may be 
trained on lattice, for this purely ornamental work of the 
flower-garden. It seems a long step from the wind-breaks, 
with which we began, but there is, through all, a thread of 
relationship. 



Chapter V. 

FRUIT TREES AND SMALL 
FRUITS. 




California's Leading Industry. — Orchards: where 

to Plant them. — Treatment, Pruning, &c. — 

A List of Fifty Trees, for a Family Orchard. — 

Leading Market, Drying, and Canning Varieties. 

— Small Fruits. — Their Culture, and Best Kinds 
Known. 



ITHIN the limits of our State, every fruit of the tem- 
perate zone, and some of the tropics, will ripen in 
perfection. We have soil of every character, climate of 
every possibility, resources undeveloped everywhere, indus- 
tries yet to be fostered, hopes to be realized, a future which 
we, who live in its midst, can hardly as yet comprehend. 
This is not only a land of mile-wide wheat-fields, of ships 
loaded with one man's crop, of principalities owned by 
an individual; but it is also a land of homes, of fruitful 
orchards, and vineyards ruddy with wine, of quiet villages, 
and sunny gardens, and acres of scarlet berries. It is a fair 
and a growing land, with no problem too hard for us to solve, 
no danger so great that we need despair. The great indus- 
tries of our future, if we would use our advantages of soil 
and climate, are to be fruit raising, and kindred employ- 
ments. Some varieties we shall doubtless over-produce, and 
we shaill not at once gain control of foreign markets. But in 
the end we shall push the production and preservation of 
fruit to an extent never before known. 



HOBTICUIiTUKE AND GARDENING. 35 

It is surprising, even now, after so many years of tree- 
planting, to observe liow many localities are apparently with- 
out orchards, and how many farmers buy their fruit from the 
peddlers. Year by year, however, small orchards are planted, 
and everywhere with success. It was not long since that the 
Salinas valley was considered unfit for the culture of fruit 
and berries — but the thrifty young orchards now tell a 
different story — and some-day we shall expect to see extensive 
orchards of apricots, peaches, prunes, pears, and apples, with 
large canneries and dry-houses, in that thriving valley. 

The first step towards subduing a new land is to break up 
the virgin sod, and make vast wheat and corn-fields; the next 
step is to work towards orchard, rotation of crops, forage 
plants, blooded stock, the best of everything, and only a por- 
tion of wheat. This step we are now taking, as our succes- 
sive State and county fairs very plainly show. Californians 
were always in earnest about whatever they wanted; gold we 
sought with volcanic energy; now costly plants, fine stock, 
and thrifty orchards, are pursued with the same zeal. 

People who have never planted an orchard — and there are 
many such — desire to know all about the soil needed, the 
exposure and location to choose, the kinds to plant, and the 
after treatment to give. Now, volumes have been written on 
these subjects, and it would be sublime folly for anyone to 
try to condense them in a short chapter. It is only possible 
to give a few leading points, adapted, so far as maybe, to our 
diversified climate. 

An orchard needs good soil, but rarely the wettest on the 
farm. The mistake of many of our earlier tree-planters was 
in putting them near springs, close to streams, or in natural 
pastures, green the year round. In every case unhealthy 
and short-lived trees have been the result. Lowlands must 
be well drained; uplands which are fit to grow wheat on, will 
also raise apples, almonds, and peaches, by means of good 
cultivation. There are many j)oints in our mountains where 
no irrigation is needed, to insure large crojDS. Along the 
northern Sierras, and through the coast range, south to 
Monterey, small orchards require little care. 



86 PACIFIC buraij handbook 

A south-eastern slope seems usually the best, but fruit 
will ripen later on a northern slope. It is best to plow and 
cross-plow before the rains begin, and also to lay off the 
ground; and dig holes where the trees are to stand. Thor- 
oughly i^repare the soil, for, otherwise, transplanted trees 
cannot make much growth, and a larger proportion will die. 
When the trees come from the nursery, unpack the bundles 
at once, and heel the trees in; or, if the bark seems shriveled, 
cover them entirely, root and top, for a few days, with moist 
earth. 

When the soil is in the right condition to plant, make a 
clean cut on the ends of all broken roots, and sh^orten all the 
branches fully one half. If the weather is dry, we would 
recommend '* puddling" the roots, that is, dipping them in 
a thin mud of rich soil; but care must be taken that the fine 
fibres are not j)lastered together by this process. Plant the 
tree a very little deeper than the line at which it stood in the 
nursery; let one man hold the tree, shaking it slightly, 
whilst the other sifts moist surface earth under and around 
the roots. Press the soil carefully, and, if dry weather 
follows, water must be applied. 

Mulching is very valuable in our climate, and consists in 
covering the ground near the tree with straw, coarse manure, 
leaves, tan-bark, or some similar substance. This must not 
be neglected, especially where the summers are hot and dry. 

Pruning should begin when the trees are jDlanted. By 
constant and careful attention a fine head may be formed, 
even of varieties naturally of poor growth. Our main in-un- 
ing must be done in the early winter; but what is called 
SUMMER PRUNING, or the pinching-in of soft-wood shoots, 
may bo practiced with very good effect. By rubbing off a 
shoot which starts in the wrong place we may easily save 
sawing off quite a limb in the winter. 

Kinds, 

A great many men are planting out small orchards for 
family use, and desire u good assortment, but have not room 



OF HOKTIOUIjTUKB AND GARDENING. 



37 



for many trees. To suit sucli, the following list of 50 trees 
was prepared. They are all family and market sorts, well 
adapted to our climate, and forming a succession throughout 
the season. They "will cover a little less than half an aero of 
land, and the space between may be planted with straw- 
berries, raspberries, and currants; 

List of Fifty Fruit Trees, for 
Family Use. 



APPLES. 



No. 

Early Harvest 1 

Red Astracan 1 

Gravenstein 1 

American Summer Pearmain 1 

Skinner's Seedling 1 

Haye3(Wine Apple) 1 

Ben Davis ,1 

Yellow Bellflower 2 

Smith's Cider 1 



No. 

Rhode Island Greeninsr 1 

Vandevere 1 

Waji'oner 1 

White Winter Pearmain 2 

Yellow Newtown Pippin 2 

Large Red Siberian Crab 1 

Total 18 



PEARS. 



Madeleine . . 
Bloodgood . 

Bartlett 

Seckle 

Fall Butter. 



No. 
. 1 
. 1 
. 1 
. 1 
. 1 



No. 

Glout Morcoau 1 

Ea£»,er Beaurre ] 

Winter Nelis 2 

Total 9 



PEACHES. 



No. 

Brigg's May 1 

Shinn's Rareripe 1 

Crawford's Eai ly 1 

Richmond 1 

Smock's Late Free 1 



White Imperial.. 

Salway 

Old Mixon Cling. 



No. 
. 1 
. 1 
. 1 



Total 8 



Cherry Plum 

Columbia 

Washington 

Felenberg Prune. 



PLUMS AND PRUNES. 



Early Purple Guigne. 
Elton 



No. 
. 1 
. 1 
. 1 
. 1 



Coe's Golden Drop 

Ickworth Imperatrice. 



No. 
. 1 
. 1- 



Total i 6 



CHERRIES. 



No. 
. 1 



Black Tartarian , 1 

Royal Ann 1 

English Morello 1 



Total 5 



38 PACIFIC RUEAIi HANDBOOK 

List op Fifty Fbuit Trees— (Continued.) 

APRICOTS. 

No. 

Lai^e Early 1 

Hemskirke 1 

Moorpark 1 

Total 3 

PERSIMMON. 

No. 
Japanese 1 

A good family orchard should also include at least 6 Mission 
grape, 6 Muscatel, 5 Muscat of Alexandria, 6 Black Ham- 
burgh, 6 Black Morocco, and 6 FJame Tokay. 

It is difficult to select a list for market purposes, because 
the popular demand varies from season to season. Color and 
size are the first considerations, whilst flavor has been of 
secondary importance. A firm texture, which will bear car- 
riage well, is desirable. There has never been any sale for 
sweet apples in the San Francisco market. Probably the 
best market apples have been: Eed Astracan, which, though 
ripening irregularly, is of high color; Gravenstein, Havs, 
Skinner's Seedling, and Washington Strawberry, for Fall 
apples; and Bellflower, Jonathan, King, Nickajack, Smith's 
Cider, Vandevere, Wagoner, White Winter Pearmain, and 
Yellow Newtown Pippin, for winter apples. 

The market pears are few in number. Clapp's Favorite, 
Bartlett, Beurre Clairgeau, Seckle, Beurre Hardy, Doyenne 
D'Alencon, Easter Beurre, and Winter Nelis, are among the 
best. Bartlett and Winter Nelis are at present jDreferred for 
shipping East. The canning establishments use Bartlett and 
Flemish Beauty, both of which also dry well. 

The plums, for drying, are: Columbia, Felenberg prune, 
Petite Prune D'Agen (French prune) , and Washington. The 
canners at present use Coe's Golden Drop, and Yellow Egg, 
besides jDrunes and gages. 

The very early peaches, such as Brigg's May, have been 
profitable in good locations. Foster, Crawford's Early, Eich- 
mond, Crawford 's Late, Smock's Late Free, and Salway, 



OP HOBTICULTUKE AND GARDENING. 89 

make a succession of yellow peaches for market; and Alex- 
ander, Early Tillotson, Sliinn's Kareripe, Stump the World, 
White Imperial, and Silver Medal, are good white varieties. 
Clingstones are moi'e in demand for canning purposes, and 
will now probably pay to plant. Old Mixon Cling, and the 
Orange Cling, are preferred. 

Apricots, of the larger kinds, such as Hemskirke, Large 
Early, arid Moorpark, are in ^reat demand for drying and for 
canning. Nectarines are also sometimes canned. 

Among cherries, the Black Tartarian still keeps the lead 
for market, although Monstrous Mezel, and Koyal Ann, rank 
high. It is not probable that there will be an over produc- 
tion of this beautiful fruit, for many years to come. 

The new Japan Persimmon is already widely distributed. 
Doubtless those who succeed in fruiting it will find a large 
profit; but experience alone can determine its final value as a 
market fruit. 

Small Fruits. 

The strawberry is the most universally grown, either for 
market or for home use. Amongst the hundreds of native 
and foreign varieties now on this coast, every soil and situa- 
tion can be suited. All that need be said about culture and 
treatment is, to plant healthy, well rooted young plants, as 
early as possible, on deeply dug and pulverized soil, which, 
if poor, must be manured. Plant two rows, a foot apart, 
leave a space of three feet; plant two more rows; and so on. 
Irrigate through the summer. In this section (Alameda Co.) 
Longworth's Prolific, and Peabody's Seedling, have been 
good market varieties. Monarch of the West, Jucunda, Seth 
Boyden, and Black Defiance, promise well. That old variety, 
the Triomphe de Gand, still stands in the front rank for 
heavy soils. 

Raspberries may be planted in rows, four feet apart, 
and two feet in the row. The favorite red raspberries at 
present are Herstine, Brandy wine, and the old Red Antwerp. 
The Mammoth Cluster and the Doolittle have proved the 



40 PACXPIO BUEAIi HANDBOOK 

best black-caps. The Philadelphia, a red variety, is largely 
grown. 

The only gooseberries considered entirely reliable are the 
Downing, and Houghton's Seedling. 

The most valuable currant for market is the Cherry. 

The Kittatinny blackberry is the best for home use, 
although the Lawton is still extensively grown. 

The small fruits require water, and a good deal of care in 
manuring, weeding, and careful culture. The farmer who 
will not give them this had better not try to grow them. But 
he who does will find that in no other way will a small piece 
of ground bring more satisfactory returns, either in pleasure 
or profit. Anyone who lives near a large town, or where 
there are mines or mills, had better investigate the subject of 
supplying the local market. In many cases a prosperous 
business can readily be established, for few of our towns are 
well supplied with small fruits, and the business is not likely 
to be over-done. The one heavy expense of small fruits is 
the gathering; and if the boys and girls of the neighborhood 
could be hired for this, a mutual benefit would be conferred. 
When the crop is heavy, and prices low, small fruit-growers 
have made their surplus into wines, extracts and jellies, 
which command a fair price. 



Chapter VI. 

SHADE TREES. 



Universal Love of Shade Trees. — Their Measure- 
less Beauty. — My Friend who Uses too many 
Evergreens. — The proper Use of Conifers, and 
the most Desirable Kinds. — How to Transplant 
Evergreens. — Deciduous Trees. — Their Great 
Variety, and Place in Landscape Gardening. — 
Leading Varieties. — Nut-bearing Shade Trees. 
— Trees with Tropical Foliage. —The Weeping 
Trees. — Ancestral Oaks. 



V|rrT is a feign and a proof of the good in humanity that men 
(^ have, from the earliest ages, surrounded their homes, 
palaces, and sacred places, with groves of trees which pro- 
duced no edible fruit, but were simply rare and beautiful. 
Worthy of remembrance were the classic times, with their 
groves of oak, ilex, and olive, clustered around the temples 
of white marble, above the azure sea; the garden of Solomon 
—first recorded Arboretum — where all plants grew, from tho 
cedar of Lebanon, to the hyssop on the wall; the fair terraces 
which the king of Babylon reared for his home-sick, mountain 
queen; the shade and coolness of Haroun Al Kaschid's v/and- 
ering paths, where song and fragrance forever mingled; tho 
deep stillness and terror of the Druid's sacrificial groves; tho 
grassy hollows, and untrameled ways of Merry Sherwood. 
In modern times, botanic gardens, and collections of choice 
trees, are found in every country; those ornamental species 



42 PAOIPIO KUBAL HANDBOOK 

— "which it formerly required the revenue of a king to pur- 
chase — are brought within the reach of every man who pos- 
sesses a rod of soil; we live, gladly be it said, in a planting 
age, and an infinite variety of effects is possible. The utilit- 
arian would plant nothing but Bartletts and Pippins, Gages 
and Crawfords, in straight-rowed monotony, surrounded by 
walls of poplar, with their unendurable stiffness; but there 
are those who realize that the best gift of a tree is intangible 
and measureless, won only by thoughtful grouping, and 
much study of its nature. To the lovers of deep, song- 
haunted woods, so full of gray-haired wisdom, so young 
with budding leaves, a tree is at once a temple and a labora- 
tory; it is beautiful beyond expression; and it is full of active 
life and of wonderful processes, varying with every species, 
and indeed most worthy of study in those kinds which have 
not been modified by the meddling tendencies of man — the 
gardening animal. 

I hope no one who plants trees for shade near his house 
will follow the plan of my friend Williston, whoso abiding 
j)assion is for evergreens of every description. His little 
place fronts the south, and you drive in from the main road, 
under a continuous arch of Monterey cypress, and circle 
about a vast green island of pine and cedar, to the shaded 
porch, protected by four sentinel-like Italian cypresses. East 
and Avestof the house are masses of holly, juniper, and yew, 
single specimens of magnolia, and hedges of privet. The 
deciduous trees that his wife desired, remembering New 
England's maples, oaks, and beeches, have been contemptu- 
ously dismissed to the north side of the house, and scattered 
around the rambling barn and the mossy corrals. The 
natural consequences have followed, and a more unhealthy 
place for winter residence cannot be found in Alameda county. 
The shaded walks are never dry; the shaded house drips and 
stains; the shaded people look pale and bloodless. The 
whole place is a victim to misapplied affection for the ever- 
greens; and the family physician prospers, judging from his 
frequent visits- Had the same trees been massed in clumps, 
relieved by trees of a different type and growth, and kept far 



OP HOKTICULTUBE AND GARDENING. 43 

enough from the house to allow it to stand in clear relief 
against deeper masses behind, the effect would have been 
artistic and vigorous. 

With us, the conifers must be used with a sparing hand, 
except for hedges and wind-breaks; we do not feel the need 
of them, as do our Eastern friends, with their long winters. 
Small plants do not thrive well near them, and they are 
expensive to keep in order. On small grounds only the 
dwarfer varieties are allowable. Still we must admit the rare 
power of combination which the conifers possess when pro- 
perly controlled. They give strength to the landscape; they 
are embodied silence; we love their defiance of the season's 
changes. 

Among our most desirable conifers are the Cupressus 
Lawsonia, with its dark and drooping grace; the Picea Ama- 
bilis, or Lovely Silver fir; the dwarf Arbor Vitses, both green 
and golden; the delicate Cryptomerias, from Japan; the 
Cupressus Gouveniana, of dwarf growth, and showy when in 
flower; the Bermuda Juniper; and the LibocedrusDecurrens, 
or native Arbor Vitse. The dwarf upright and the weeping 
Junipers, are beautiful for small places, whilst the trailing 
varieties should be put on rockwork, or on little knolls. The 
Torreya Californica, or Nutmeg tree, is in many respects the 
finest of our native trees. It grows slowly, but always has a 
character of its own, and, when fully grown, as I have seen 
it on the summits of the coast range, possesses a grandeur 
and strength undescribable. The cedar of Lebanon, and the 
Deodar, or Himalayan cedar, have historic interest, in addi- 
tion to their rare beauty. The Pin us Pinaster, or Cluster 
pine, a native of southern Europe, is a beautiful tree, and 
deserves extensive planting, esi^ecially by the ocean, where 
something is needed to bind the sand, or to form a wind- 
break. For X3ure ornament, in sheltered places, the Araucaria 
Cookii, A. Bidwellii, and A. Imbricata, are always admired. 
The Hemlock spruce, and the deciduous cypress of our 
southern States, do well in wet places, and often on uplands. 

Evergreens are a little hard to transplant, and should be 
moved when small. The tendency is more and more to pur- 



44 PAOIFIO RURAL HANDBOOK 

chase Monterey cypress, and pine, -when not over 18 inches 
high; and when other varieties are wanted in large quantity, 
this is the safest size. The small, fibrous roots must not be 
allowed to get dry, and the trees must be sacked with a ball 
of earth in all cases, unless shipped in boxes, as grown. If 
it is late in the season, trim heavily, to restore the balance 
between top and roots. If a tree looks badly, shade, and 
sprinkle the leaves, which will often bring it around. 

But if we would add beauty to our grounds, the decidu- 
ous trees are our main dependence; so we must leave the 
interesting group of conifers. Deciduous trees give a daily 
variety to every feature of the home. Some bud, whilst 
others are in full blossom, and some are loaded with the 
ripened seed. Some, as the Paulonia Imperialis, or blue 
trumpet tree, blossom on leafless stems; others, as the 
mountain ash(Pyrus Quercifolia) , are chiefly ornamental when 
covered with clustered berries. They vary, too, in growth, 
for some pierce the very heavens, some are compact and low, 
and some are of pendulous growth. They difi'er, also, in the 
shape and color of the limbs, which may be round, com- 
pressed, or nearly square, as the South Carolina poplar; or 
they may be green, brown, golden, black, purple, bronze, or 
beautifully speckled and mottled. The spotted trunks of 
sycamore add a peculiar charm to our summer landscapes. 
The greatest variety, however, is observable in the form, 
grouping, and color of the leaves, which may be simple, 
compound, serrate, lobed, palmate, feather-veined, or of 
colors ranging from an olive green to a reddish purple. By 
virtue of this unlimited variety, the deciduous trees take the 
highest rank in landscape gardening. 

Deciduous trees should have a straight, smooth, and 
healthy trunk, crowned by a symmetrical mass of well devel- 
oped foliage. The peculiar charm of an evergreen is in 
having its branches extend nearly to the ground, so that the 
shape of the tree is pyramidal; but the glory of our ashes, 
maples, elms, and beeches, is in their slender trunks and 
wide-reaching arms, their moving leaves, and the sun and 
shadow on the grass beneath them. Deciduous tree planting 



OP HOETICtJLTTTEE AND GAEDENING. 4:5 

in this State is yet in its infancy, and many desirable kinds 
are not yet found in our nurserymen's catalogues. 

Among the ashes, Fraxinus Europa, and F. Salicifolia, 
have succeeded best. They need heavy pruning, and a stout 
stake, for a few years. The beech is a slow grower with us, 
yet it is too noble a tree to be neglected. The American 
beech, and the purple-leaved, are among the most desirable. 
The maples comprise many varieties, but the Eastern kinds 
rarely grow well here. The Oregon maple, and our mountain 
species, are beautiful, rapidly growing kinds, and nearly 
perfect for planting by the roadside. The seeds should be 
sown as soon as ripe. 

The large class of nut-trees can be used for ornament, 
thus answering a double purpose. I often see men who have 
only a few acres of ground, planting pepper trees, or poplars, 
along the fence, when the hickory, chestnut, pecan, butter- 
nut, and black walnut, would be much better. There are 
often little angles left about the out-buildings, where one or 
two trees can easily be planted; or neglected fence corners, 
broken slopes which are hard to plow, and borders of streams, 
may be filled with nut-bearing trees. The English walnut is 
more of a nut-bearing tree, but single specimens are very 
fine. The Italian chestnut is the most reliable here. 

One or two of the Alianthus give a sub-tropical appearance 
to the grounds, but the subterranean suckering is a ground 
of complaint, so that we had better depend on palms, 
drsecenas, and acacias. The elm, the linden, and thecatalpa, 
are suitable for avenues and roadsides. The ginko (Salis- 
buria Adiantum) has tri-lobed leaves on long petioles, which 
give the tree a peculiar appearance, that harmonizes well 
buildings and rocky heights. This is often called the maiden- 
hair tree, and there is a sub-yariety with variegated leaves. 
The mesquite tree, and the carob, of Spain, known as "St. 
John's Bread, are in every way adapted to our soil, and 
possess an economic value. 

The weeping trees form a very lovely class. Everyone 
immediately thinks of the weeping willow, first introduced 
into England by Pope, who planted some little twigs in his 



46 PAOIFIO RURAL HANDBOOK 

garden at Twickenham. But the weeping ash, the cut-leaved 
weeping birch, the dwarf weeping cherry, and the Camper- 
down weeping elm, are all equally beautiful. The weeping 
mountain ash can be grafted on the common kind. The 
weeping Sophora Japonica is a lovely tree. All weeping trees 
arc apt to bring sad memories. They are, in landscapes, the 
sweetly pathetic chord, the minor key. They should cluster 
around old ruins, and follow the winding streams, and ripple 
modest lakes with their graceful branches. Most of all, in 
the quiet cities of the dead, they should bend as kind 
mourners among the gleaming piles. 

Thus much have I written in vain if no one is moved to 
plant a tree. Whoever places a seed, or tree, in the kindly 
earth, is king over unreckoned forces. By virtue of his act 
the buds swell, the leaves unfold, the fibres strengthen, and 
over his gray hairs the wind shall tremble through the 
branches, and sing him softly to sleep. The children who 
played under **' grandpa's tree," will go out into the world, 
armed with home's love and home's training; the tree will 
reach its broad and blessing arms over their hopes and 
victories. It may not be a "talking oak," yet perhaps a 
wavering elm, a singing maple. Then, when its life fades, 
for even trees die, its knots and fibres shall live again in the 
shape of a costly table, or jDolished bracket, or the trinket- 
box of some fair, coquettish maid, or the wooden cross of 
some poor sailor, pressed to his dying lips whilst drifting on 
the naked sea, and praying for the glimpse of an approaching 
sail. 



Chapter VII. 



SHRUBS. 



The Value of Shrubs. — Their Easy Culture, and 
Clustered Memories. — Shrubs for each Season. 
Deciduous, and Broad-leaved Shrubs. — Diseases, 
Treatment, and Method of Training. 

fHE garden which has no shrubs anywhere is sorrowfully 
deficient. They are a connecting link between soft- 
wooded plants and trees, from a horticultural standpoint; 
they are like trees in miniature, with an added grace of leaf 
And blossom; they are statelier and more enduring than the 
Boft-wooded, frost-bitten denizens of our gardens. In time 
of blooming they girdle the round year with brightness; 
there are shrubs for each season, and for each mouth. 
Where a tree is vast, imposing, a shadower of much ground, 
the shrub is graceful, friendly, home-like, adapting itself to 
our little nooks and corners, with lovable versatility. The 
twisted branches of an oak may be gnarled, rugged, full of 
power, and knotted, sinewy strength; the twisted limbs of a 
Pyrus Japonica are merely quaint, picturesque, or fantastic 
withal. Shrubs need comparatively little care, and the best 
of them flourish without irrigation. Hours, and weeks, of 
labor must be spent over beds of annuals, and soft-wooded 
plants, all beautiful in their way, essential to the complete 
garden, and more charming in color, or fragrance, than 
any of the shrubs. But, on the other hand, shrubs need 
no care, after they are once planted, except an early manuring 
and pruning. They become, in the course of time, a per- 
manent part of the landscape, and memories cluster around 



48 PACIFIC RURAL HANDBOOK 

them even more thickly than about the trees of childhood. 
What middle-aged person does not hold in fond affection the 
snowball by the gate, or mother's lilac, so carefully watched 
in spring, when its fragrant spires began to appear, or the 
scarlet-flowered pomegranate, or the white sprays of Spirea, 
drooping sadly over some playmate's grassy mound, unfor- 
gotten, treasured, and forever holy? Or else, in childhood, 
when each day 

** Was one continuous song, 
Linked sweetly with all other days," 

who has not found a Kalmia in the woods, or Emerson's 
Rhodora; or in the South, the Stuartia, flower of a kingly 
line; or in our Sierras, the lilac Ceanothus; or along the 
coast ranges, our native Rhododendron? Whoever has, will 
remember the thrill of joy, the beauty of the newly discovered 
world, the clustering delights of that moment. Whoever 
has not, whatever I may hereafter say, for them I am not 
now writing. I have a profound, and I trust an eternal pity 
for the man or woman who has no memory of olden flowers. 

The founder of a home will be wise to plan for many 
shrubs, at intervals along the walks, in masses and groups 
on the lawn, hiding unsightly objects, winding by the 
margins of streams, crowning rocky knolls, and clustering in 
shady valleys. For blooming in winter, here, we can depend 
on the Kerria Japonica, with rose-like, double, yellow blos- 
soms; the Japan quince, either scarlet, pink, or white, and a 
brilliant object on the lawn; the Catalonian jasmine, a 
shrubby vine, most effective when trained to a pillar, and 
allowed to trail over, as a fountain; the shrubby honey- 
suckles; and, over a large part of our State, the camellia, so 
perfect in shape and color of blossom. 

For spring blooming we can have Spireas, white, rose- 
colored, single or double; lilacs, white or purple; Wigelias, 
of different shades; Deutzias; hardy white azaleas; Laures- 
tinus (also a winter bloomer) ; our native Cercis, or Judas 
tree, with its charming, rosy-purple clusters; dogwood 
(Cornus), of a dozen species; Calycanthus, lover of we 



OP HOETlCtrLTUEE AND GAEDENING. 49 

places, and full of spicy fragrance; Ceanothus, both nprigbt 
and trailing; sometimes, in favorable localities, the pink- 
tinted, urn-like blossoms of our mountain manzinita. 

All summer we may depend upon roses. There will be 
Altheas, Kennedyas, crape myrtles, oleanders, and a long list 
of other shrubs, also, which will carry us imperceptibly 
through the autumn to the Japan quince, again. 

The proper theory on which to be a shrub-fancier would 
be, it appears, to first have a series which, as a whole, would 
supply the. year with flowers. Secondly, to have a single 
species on which to lavish your deepest affection. The rho- 
dodendrons, camellias, and azaleas, have, more often than 
any others, received the attention of amateurs, and there are 
already some extensive collections on this coast. Azaleas are 
hard to keep, and difficult to manage, seemingly not well 
■adapted to the climate, although we have two very handsome 
native species, found in the coast range. With scarcely any 
exceptions, the shrubs of Japan and Australia do well here, 
and also the shrubs of our southern States. 

Deciduous shrubs are best used in early winter, and bear 
transplanting well, with a good pruning to balance the loss 
of roots. After the buds have started it is late for safe plant- 
ing, although if the atmosphere is damp, most shrubs will 
take hold, even if the young wood is half an inch long. In 
such cases more pruning is required, and little blooming 
allowed, the first year. 

Broad-leaved evergreens, as the camellia, are much more 
difficult, and should be moved with a ball of earth attached 
to the roots, at a season when they are not in bloom. Too 
much water must not be applied to the roots. Sprinkling the 
leaves with water, several times a day, will often save plants 
from withering. 

The Hydrangeas, as their very name implies, need an 
abundance of water, and make an effective lawn shrub. The 
ungainly and rather useless, Melaleucas (bottle brush), are 
less popular than formerly. The great objection to the 
double peach, almond, plum, cherry, &c., is their short 
season of bloom. The black or brownish scale (Coccus), 



50 PACIFIC KUEAli HANDBOOK 

found often on oleanders, has led to a crusade against that 
plant; but a strong suds of -whale-oil soap, and free potash, 
api)lied often, is a complete remedy both here, and on the 
orange, or other plants. 

The body of a shrub is liable to become covered with 
moss, and to crack, and become unsightly. Soap-suds or lye, 
applied as a wash, will remedy this. Some few shrubs are 
liable here to the attack of a species of borer, similar to that 
found on apple trees; and, where the marks of their work are 
noticed, they must be killed, with a pointed wire. 

Shrubs are susceptible of a number of different methods 
of training. A snowball, for instance, may be allowed to 
send up a large number of stems from the surface of the 
ground, thus insuring a constant supply of new wood; or it 
may be trimmed to a single trunk, which is more handsome, 
and gives better blooms. We may have the form of a globe; 
or, by cutting out the central stems, that of a cup. Shrubs 
with drooping flowers look well trained in the shape of a fan. 
Shrubs, as the Clian thus, of rather trailing growth, should be 
forced to make a single, upright stem, to a height of three or 
four feet, and then allowed to droop evenly on all sides. 

Shrubs are seldom propagated from seeds. Most of our 
shrubs will grow best from cuttings taken off, in this climate, 
in the fall, and planted in the open ground, or in boxes of 
sand, as directed in the chapter on cuttings. 



Chapter VIII. 



THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. 



Farmers ought to Raise more Vegetables. — 
Different Ways of Laying out a Garden. — The 
Combination System. — General Culture and 
Treatment. — ^Tfie Tools Needed. — Notes on the 
best Vegetables. — Birds in the Garden. 

fT is a lamentable fact that not one farmer in ten raises his 
own vegetables. He prefers to buy from one of the 
yearly increasing band of Portuguese or Chinese peddlers, 
who have learned how to make every rod count, and are 
steadily advancing their fortunes by the neglect of the mass 
of farmers. Even if the peddler's celery is green, his turnips 
and parsnips woody, his cauliflower wilted, his onions strong, 
yet the average farmer will buy from him rather than to 
start a garden of his own, where everything is sure to be 
fresh, and at hand when wanted. This last is an important 
item. Housekeeping is full of so many unexpected emerg- 
encies in the way of sudden visitors and numberless acci- 
dents, that a flourishing little garden will bridge over many 
a difficulty. If we also consider the cheapness and health- 
fulness of home-grown vegetables, it would seem as if the 
peddler's occupation should be gone. 

But the average farmer does not fully understand how to 
produce good vegetables cheaply, and how to have a constant 
succession throughout the season. He plants corn of the 
"White Flint variety, for roasting ears, without much atten- 
tion to the far better sweet corn; he has a late patch of com- 



62 PAOWlO EtJRAIi HANDBOOK. 

mon field peas, but neglects tlie delicious marrowfats; he 
does not believe in celery, salsify, parsnips, lima beans, for 
succotash, or black-wax, for snaps; his tomatoes are sour, 
wrinkled, and watery, because he does not grow the Trophy, 
and Acme. In these matters there might and ought to be a 
great change for the better. If a spot for a vegetable garden 
was deliberately chosen, and for all time set apart, and highly 
fertilized; if a little study were put upon books of gardening, 
and catalogues; and if the best varieties only were planted — 
we cannot doubt that the average farmer would soon take a 
vast pride in his vegetable garden. 

The ground for a good vegetable garden needs to be 
deeply plowed, and well covered with completely rotted 
manure. Plow again, and harrow until in good condition, 
and ready for planting. We will suppose that the ground is 
prei)ared in early spring, and will briefly sketch a plan of 
procedure. 

There are two leading methods of raising vegetables: one 
in beds, or small squares, and one in long rows. Each 
method has its admirers, and its advantages; so we shall 
present both. In the bed system, the whole plot is first laid 
off in large squares, and again into narrow beds, from six to 
ten feet wide, and of any length desired. Narrow i^aths are 
left between the beds, and these may, in a well arranged 
garden, be bordered with thyme, sage, sweet basil, majoram, 
or some other herb. Fragrant or medicinal herbs are the 
only iDlants proiDer for an edging in the vegetable garden. 
When vegetables are sown in beds a great deal of hand-work 
is necessary; but some kinds thrive better with this constant 
care; and in no other way can the garden be made to look so 
well. 

According to the row system, we plant in long rows, and 
cultivate with a horse. There are no paths laid out, and it is 
in reality only a field system adapted to the wants of the 
vegetable garden. No one who has not tried it can realize 
the success attainable by this simple method. Peas, beans, 
parsnips, carrots, salsify, carrots, onions, &c., maybe grown 
to great advantage, and indeed better and more cheaply, than 



OF HOBTIOULTUEE AND GAEDENINQ. 53 

if in beds. The rows may be made straight with a marker, 
after the ground has been thoroughly well prepared, and 
sown wdth any of the above seeds. When the second leaf is 
well developed these may be thinned out. Cultivate often, 
and keep clear from weeds. In no other way can a busy 
farmer find time to attend to a vegetable garden, than by 
having it planted mainly on the row system. 

Since each system has its advantages, we ought to com- 
bine them. In a garden jDlanned on the l3ed system there 
ought also to be long rows of peas, sweet corn, and other 
field vegetables; in a garden planned on the row system 
there ought also to be a series of small beds, atone side, con- 
taining radishes, lettuce, cabbage, and cauliflower x^lants, for 
future transplanting, turnij^s, and similar vegetables. Here, 
also, may be a small frame for tomato plants, or a hot-bed, 
for planting sweet potatoes. 

The question of proportion is hard to settle in a vegetable 
garden; and, since the tastes of individuals and families vary, 
no definite rule can bo laid down. Most farmers, however, 
will need a constant succession of peas, sweet corn, cabbages, 
cauliflower, onions, parsnips and turnips. By far the larger 
part of the garden may well be dedicated to these vegetables, 
and, by successive sowings of two weeks apart, a constant 
supply can be secured. Other vegetables, as celery, salsify, 
snap-beans, okra, &c., may in some cases be favorites. Nor 
must asparagus, that most delicate and healthful vegetable, 
be neglected in any garden, however small. Of all these, 
and many others, long rows, mulched a little in dry weather, 
and given ordinary field treatment, will insure a full supply. 
In any part cf California where snow does not fall, we may 
sow the following vegetables at any time during the fall or 
winter: beets, carrots, celery, cabbage, cauliflower, endive, 
lettuce, parsley, parsnip, onions, i^eas, radish, turni^^s, 
and spinach. Until danger of frost is past, we must not sow 
beans, sweet corn, cucumbers, watermelons, squash, and 
tomatoes. Seeds sown in winter must be lightly covered, 
and the soil pressed only a little above them; but seeds sown 
in summer require a deeper covering, and a close pressing of 



54 PAOIFIO KUBAL HANDBOOK 

the eoil, to prevent the hot dry air from destroying the germa 
of life, or wilting the growing plants. If beet seed is soaked 
for twenty-four hours, it germinates better. Carrot seed 
should only be sown on the cleanest lund obtainable, for it 
grows slowly, and the weeds are apt to take possession. 

The tools required in the vegetable garden, will consist of 
a spade, of the best make, a large steel rake, an 8-inch garden 
trowel, a cultivator hoe, which combines many points of 
excellence, a prong hoe, which is very useful to loosen soil, 
after irrigation, and a garden reel and line, for marking rows. 
A small hand-weeder, with prongs like extended fingers, will 
be found useful here, and also in the flower garden. A wheel- 
barrow for moving manure, earth, mulching, and refuse, will 
be necessary; and a watering pot, or piece of garden Lose, 
attached to a hydrant, is needed to sprinkle newly sown beds 
in dry weather. 

The best seed catalogues give com^Dlete lists of the seeds 
required to keep up a succession, and contain much inform- 
ation about culture and time of ripening. To give in this 
chapter merely borrowed information, is far from our plan, 
and we refer readers to the catalogues of Bliss, Thorburn, 
Henderson, Hovey, Dreer, Landreth, and others, for prin- 
ciples of a general nature. But experience has taught us 
that some vegetables do not succeed well here, whilst others 
are superior. Notes of this character are in the line of our 
work. 

The black-wax, snap-bean, and the Lima pole-bean, are 
our best garden beans, for productiveness and quality. The 
Egyptian turnip beet is superior to the common early turnip. 
Kale is scarcely grown at all, away from San Francisco, and 
eea-kale, not anywhere. Brussels sprouts, and kohl rabi, do 
not seem to do well. Turnips cannot be grown as a field 
crop with any certainty. Carrots, large white Belgian, and 
long orange,. are grown for stock, and do admirably on the 
tule lands. Of the newer cabbages, Henderson's early summer 
does extremely well; the Jersey Wakefield is hard to head in 
the warmer parts of our State. Celeriac, or turnip-rooted 
celery, is of easy culture, and worth trying. The early 



OP HORTIOULTDRE AND GARDENINa. 55 

Minnesota sweet corn, and Stowell's late evergreen, have 
been the most satisfactory of a dozen kinds tried. It is easy 
to have green corn until the frost kills the stalks, by succes- 
sive plantings. The white and green Cos lettuce thrive 
better than the other varieties, and do not run up to seed so 
soon. Among the onions, the new Italian varieties, giant 
Rocca, white Tripoli, &c., are well adapted to our climate, 
and popular. 

Peas merit a separate paragraph. They are grown so 
largely for market that some seasons they hardly pay for 
picking. The varieties used for market are not often the 
best. No early pea is fit to eat, after the marrowfats and 
wrinkled varieties come in. "We can get nothing better, for 
a first crop, than the Philadelphia Extra Early. McLean's 
Little Gem, is one of the best early wrinkled marrows. The 
Champion of England is still a favorite kind for the general 
crop. 

Summer squash ought to be in every garden, but they do 
not seem to be grown to any great extent. Spinach thrives 
wonderfully, but is extremely apt to be covered with insects 
so minute that they are hardly noticed at first. Our wild 
mustard, mixed with beet tops, makes good greens. To- 
matoes should be started in a hot-bed. The Trophy is the 
best we have ever grown. 

The vegetable garden, properly managed, is an adjunct to 
the farm, which few men can well spare. "We have shown how 
it can be arranged and managed with economy of space and 
labor. Plant vegetables, diversify your agriculture, and load 
your table with fresh and healthy products of your own 
garden. There is no way for the man who owns a small farm 
to become independent except by producing, as far as pos- 
sible, everything he needs. 

There is room for experiments with good California 
grown seed. Our seedsmen mainly send East, and many of 
our market-gardeners do the same. But it has been proved 
that, with proper care, we can grow seed of the best quality; 
and it is to be hoped that the current of seed buyers will be 
checked, and turned towards home-grown seeds. "When we 



56 PACIFIC EURAL HANDBOOK 

give sufficient attention to the subject, I doubt not that we 
shall, in this climate, produce newvarieties of superior excel- 
lence. The subject of improved vegetables, fruits, and 
flowers, is deeply interesting; but there are hardly a dozen 
men on the coast who have made efiforts in that direction. All 
honor to our pioneer experimenters, and may others follow 
in their footsteps. 



Chapter IX. 

FLOWER GARDEN AND LAWN. 



Lord Bacon's Remark. — The Universality of Gar- 
dens. — Their hifinite Variety. — The Time when 
our Gardening Calendar properly Begins. — Au- 
tumn Work. — Our Californian Winter, and the 
Happy Awakening of the Flowers. — Gardens 
must be Permanent, kept Clean, and full of 
Fragrance and Gifts. — How to Lay Out a Gar- 
den. — Plans, Walks, advisable Flowers,and Edg- 
ings. — Roses. — Garden Statuary. — Concerning 
Rock-work. — Aquatic Gardens. — Lawns. — Beds 
Cut in the Lawn. — The Enemies of the Garden 
and Lawn. 

EN come to build stately, sooner than to garden 
finely; as if gardening were the greater perfection," 
says Lord Bacon, in one of his essays. In no more fitting 
way might this chaj)ter begin, than by thus expressing the 
thought that beautiful gardens and grassy lawns are hopeful 
signs of a nation's progress. Wealth which has been gained 
by the delights of honest toil is a lover of conservatories and 
costly gardens, and arboretums gathered from many lands. 
It is only unhealthy, speculative wealth which gambles in 
stocks, or fast horses, and lives in a round of excitement. 

One comfort in having a garden, be it ever so small, 
arises from the universality of gardens. They dot the earth 
with blossoming pulses. In every town in this State there 
are flowers, full of color and fragrance. There might well be 
more — but some there already are. Where Art has done least, 
and there are few roses and gardens, there Nature plants her 




58 PACIFIC KURAL HANDBOOK 

wild flower g-irdens, full of infinite suggestiveness and rarest 
grace, so that the children may find wild flowers, and learn 
their lesson of simplicity. 

I have heard of a lover of music who wandered, on foot, 
over the world, that he might hear the songs of the people, 
and the sounds of Nature, in their infinite change and pathos. 
He stood at palace gates, and by the dwellings of poverty. 
He walked crowded cities at noon-day, and weird forests at 
midnight. He heard the mother, hushing her sick child; 
the sailor boy, singing on the open sea; the prima donna, 
weaving her swift enchantment; the winds moaning in the 
forest; the bees, murmuring in clustered grass; the river's 
laughter on gray ledges of rock; the ocean, with its low 
trembles and stormy wrath. So, by listening to the voices of 
men, and of Nature, he grew to understand the hearts of 
both. 

Now, I have thought that in like manner one might 
journey the world over to study the gardens of the children 
of men. Here, he might pace the stately walks of a king's 
arboretum, full of rare trees, and linked with history; there, 
he might linger over a child's pet corner of pinks, marigolds, 
and fragrant brown wallflowers. He might see aristocratic 
bedding-plants of salvias and begonias, set on slopes of green 
turf; or he might notice a sweet i)ea, trained by the hands of 
some crippled child. There might be gardens where Art had 
supplemented Nature with rare and costly grace. There 
might also be neglected and broken-hearted gardens, whose 
sagging gates led into a wilderness,— but even here Nature 
would somewhat rejoice — some wildling rose would bloom 
above the weeds— some graceful grass would cover the long 
untrodden steps. Our wandering student of gardens would 
find that everywhere the hopes, sorrows, and histories of men 
are written on the friendly earth. Our gardens become 
revelations of ourselves. 

The gardening calendar of California begins, properly, 
with the cool days of autumn, and the earliest rains. In our 
climate the earlier part of winter is outwardly a period of 
rest for all plants. Each plant, however, begins, in all prob- 



OF HORTICtJIiTURE AND GARDENIKG. 59 

ability, to realize that a new growing season, with its cares, 
duties, and pleasures of blossoming, is near at hand; the 
cells begin to arrange for their sudden development of a few 
months later; the buds are sending telegraphic communica- 
tions to the most distant rootlets, bidding them bo ready for 
the rush and quiver of spring. Much of the future blossom- 
ing power of our shrubs and herbaceous perennials will 
depend on the rest they have before the rains come. 

As soon as the leaves fall, the trimming of shrubs, roses, 
&c., is in order. First, cut out all the unhealthy looking 
wood, and clear the suckers away. Then stand off, and look 
at your subject, and cut no branch without a reason — a sym- 
metrical, open head, open enough to give each blossom a 
chance to see, and to be seen — is what we want. I observe 
that, in nine-tenths of the pruning done in gardens, by far 
too many large limbs are cut from the shrubs, and there is 
seldom enough thinning out of the little twigs. Pruning, 
usually the first matter to be intrusted to an ignorant 
laborer, is j)roperly, as a question of ethics and common 
sense, the last. Let a common laborer, if you will, dig up 
your oxalis, walk over your pansies, cut in twain your 
dahlias, break your newest fuchsias, mix the labels of your 
seedling roses, and eat your early radishes and turnips — but 
keep from his bungling hand the pruning shears — fateful 
arbiter of the fortunes of shrubs. 

The garden loves the rain better than our artificial water- 
ings; the warm drops soak into the ground, and ask the little 
rootlets to adoj)t them, and change them into leaf and 
blossom, or, best of all, into final fruit, and seeds of new 
generations. The tiny roots, away down in their still home, 
telegraph back to the leaf-buds overhead, " Is it time ?" and 
the brown, scaly buds answer in sweet iteration, " O yes, it 
is! yes, it is! " Then, as Nature's example of the division of 
labor, the rootlets gather food for the brown buds, the brown 
buds grow and blossom for the rootlets, and each is a happy 
part of the perfect plant.' 

The charms of our Oalifornian winter, so suddenly full of 
growth., waves of green, tints of rose and purple in countless 



60 PACIFIC EUEAIi HANDBOOK 

buds, beginnings of song from the thickets where robins and 
thrushes gather — all these derive their exquisite surprises 
from the long months of autumn which made every root and 
bud impatient for the swift, coaxing rain. In this, our winter, 
which is but a rainy Eastern June, the Gillias, Bee Lark- 
spurs, Escholtzias, Limnanthus, and Dodecatheons, by some 
called American cowslips, are covering all the slopes with 
their mottled and pointed beaks; in shady places the colum- 
bine's dark leaves mingle with the wild parsley, and with the 
delicate volutes of uncoiling ferns; the new grass clothes the 
naked jjlaces and the fissures of tlie weather-beaten rocks. 
And, in our mountain regions, the miles of manzanita, wake, 
and bud, and blossom, by deserted mines, and on windy 
heights, shaking their royal and tinted cups in lavish grace 
upon the ground, till all the slopes are white as with drifts 
of fragrant snow. 

But long before this happy awakening time we ought to 
plan for the little portion of earth we possess; we ought to 
lay out the garden, with needed improvements and changes, 
manuring the surfaces of old beds, and preparing new ones, 
if desired. Any garden, which is worthy of the name, must 
be permanently located. The sweetest and brightest flowers 
grow best in the same places year after year. The choicest 
plants we have are not of a nomadic race. Not until we are 
sure that our garden beds are laid out for years of uninter- 
rupted peace and growth, can we venture to indulge in the 
costlier beauties which, once planted, must not be disturbed, 
under penalty of losing a year's bloom. A herbaceous peren- 
nial, 'or a handsome shrub, is like money at interest, con- 
stantly increasing in value, if left alone sufficiently. In the 
truly delightful gardens, masses of bulbs cluster in every 
available nook, so that it is fairly dangerous to dig anywhere, 
and the sweetness of the air is a constant revelation. 

Then, also, a garden ought to be small enough to be kept 
clean. A weedy garden is an abomination, hated by the gods, 
and not loved even by careless men. Nature alone can mix 
weeds and flowers in one grand display on her free hills and 
in her forest glades, and deep, silent ravines; but our leveled 



OP HOKTICULTUEE AND GAEDENING. 61 

and fenced-in jjlaces cannot endure these uncultured and 
saucy plants. 

Three good qualities a garden should possess,— it ought 
to be good to look at, and good to smell of, and full of a 
doral benevolence and liberality. Somewhere it must have 
the beauty of masses of intense color, as scarlet verbenas, 
lobelias, portulaccas, anemones; it must have fragrant 
corners, and indeed a pleasant breath, and a hint of odorous 
things all over — the love-enchanted heliotrope, roses of mirth 
and song, slender and maidenly carnations; it must be of 
that generous and universal nature which furnishes flowers 
for every event of our j)assing lives. 

The beginnings of a garden are of the greatest interest. 
Whoever plans, through our swift autumn months, for laying 
out a new garden, has a pleasant and grateful task. The time 
spent in winter, will come back with tenfold compounded 
returns; and about the first plant which blooms in a new 
garden there is a charm and glory, as if the flower itself were 
conscious of its messengership. 

The first thing to do in laying out a new garden is to make 
a suitable plan. Almost anyone can draw sufficiently well to 
sketch different outlines until a satisfactory one is found. It 
is safe to say that there must be small oval, or r6und, beds, 
for massing such flowers as petunias, stocks, phlox, scarlet 
flax, our native annuals, and most low-growing, bright- 
flowered plants. There must be larger beds for a mixed style 
of gardening, not so showy as the preceding, but far more 
practicable in small gardens. The outlines of large and small 
beds must blend harmoniously, and the paths should seldom 
be straight, but gently curving, and not too narrow. A tyro 
in the art of gardening usually fails to allow space enough 
for the walks. It is not desirable to compel your friends to 
follow in meek Indian file when they come to look at the 
garden. 

The material used on the walks is of much importance. 
In this direction we note three essentials: it must be smooth, 
and easy to walk on, hard, or impossible for weeds to grow in, 
and the color must not be glaring, but of rather a subdued 



62 PACIFIC BURAIi HANDBOOK 

tint. Well packed gravel or broken rock, makes a good 
walk. Bricks, j^lank, or asplialtum, are only good for small 
city gardens. Broken shells are too bright, unless mixed 
with something of a more neutral tint. 

After the whole garden has been laid out, leveled, the 
paths defined, and the beds dug, the very important question 
of edgings will come up. The small gardens along a street 
present a curious variety of materials, and some laughable 
effects are produced. Black whiskey bottles, for instance, 
buried so that only a few inches of the bottoms project, are 
not seriously commended! Edgings may be either natural or 
artificial. The best artificial edging, although somewhat 
expensive, is made of small edging-tiles, either plain, beaded, 
or rounded. They are of good color, neat, and indestructible. 
Natural edgings of low plants require great attention in this 
climate. Dozens of things have been tried with little success. 
The golden dwarf fever-few, kept trimmed, is effective, as 
also the deep blue lobelia. These two, alternated and kept at 
the same height, are better than either alone. One of the 
most compact edgings is of dwarf pinks, one variety of which 
forms a close, dark edging, never too large, and lasting for 
several years, when it will of course need re-setting. Spring 
blooming dwarf iris, oxalis, grape hyacinth, and crocus, are 
suitable to edge beds of bulbs. Ixias and sparaxis, left j^er- 
manently in the ground , do very well for large mixed borders. 
Box, in some localities, is desirable, but, under our hot suns, 
often dies out in spots. 

The soil which most flowers prefer is a sandy loam, or a 
vegetable mold, although we have seen fine flowers grown on 
heavier soils. In a small garden, harsh soil may be amelior- ' 
ated, light soil strengthened, and any soil whatever greatly 
improved, by the use of fertilizers, mulching, sand on the 
surface, and other agents. Manure must not be used until 
well rotted. Spread a thin coating on the surface before the 
rains. Do this also to the lawn, if thrifty trees is desired. 

Flowering plants may be started in boxes and removed to 
ho garden, or a little corner may be set ai).irt for raising 
seedlings, and starting cuttings. This corner must be well 



OF HOETICULTUBB A^D GAEDENING. 63 

protected from birds; but on this coast the hardy and half 
hardy annuals thrive better out of doors than if started in a 
greenhouse. When seedlings are transplanted a cool and 
cloudy day must be chosen, or else they should be shaded 
until established. Of course if the ground seems dry they 
must also be watered. Our best month for sowing most 
hardy and half hardy seeds, is December; and March or April 
for tender seeds. 

In considering the garden as a whole the question arises, 
*' What shall we plant?" — to which the retaliatory question 
would be: " Well, what do you want the garden for ? " If it 
is for effective show, and nothing else, if you want people to 
look over your fence and exclaim with admiration; if you 
give away few flowers — then plant dahlias, verbenas, gera- 
niums, petunias, &c., and mass everything. If your garden 
is for friendship and delight, gift-blossoms and constancy, be 
sure that, although you may mass flowers on the lawn, the 
garden has beds for cutting, and groups, and a great variety 
of flowers. 

The following list does not nearly embrace all the flowers 
suitable for our climate, but they are those which have been 
well tested. It will be understood that our early blooming 
bulbs are taken up as soon as the tops wither, and put away 
until the next season — something else then filling the 
vacant bed: 

Crocus, followed by pansies, for late blooming; anemone, 
followed by double portulucca; verbenas, of different 
colors ; Nemophila, in variety ; Collinsia, Leptosiphon, 
and Gillia tri-color, three native annuals; ten- week stock; 
lilies, of our native species, or from Japan; hyacinths, fol- 
lowed by asters; Banunculus, followed with balsams; Salpi- 
glossis, edged with browalia, both fine for cut flowers; gladi- 
olus; carnations; everlastings and grasses for winter bouquets; 
Campanula medium; Delphinium Formosum; Penstemon; 
Antirrhinum; Whitlavia; Digitalis; Schizanthus; phlox; 
candytuft; lobelia; dwarf morning-glory; scarlet flax, and 
Anagalli^; succulents, for the sunniest part of the garden, or 
for rock-work. Three or four sowings must be made of 



64: PACIFIC KUBAIi HANDBOOK 

pansies, sweet-peas, and morning-glory. All these must be 
started early. We must not omit a shady bed of violets: the 
double blue, double white, and the improved singles, are in- 
dispensable. Ageratum is good for bouquets. Train helio- 
trope and clianthus against the fence. Don't forget to plant 
a little Bourbon, or button-hole bouquet rose. 

A bed devoted to herbaceous perennials will, in duo 
season, become the garden's chiefesfc attractions. The Astible 
Japonica, with its white spikes, the well known Dicentra 
Spectabilis, or bleeding heart, of which we have several 
relatives among our native flowers, the Aquilegias, lovers of 
shade, Lychnis, Polyanthus, and dozens of others, are simply 
invaluable. 

Of roses, no garden ever has too many. Group them on 
the lawn, and by gateways; plant them along the widest 
paths. If you have any to spare set them even by the road- 
side, as a gift to the public. Never buy any roses if you can 
help it, except those grown on their own roots. The Marshal 
Niel is so difficult to start that budded roses of this kind may 
be taken. Trim roses up to a head, with a straight stem, un- 
less you wish to layer a few. The following roses are among 
the choicest known; Duchess of Edinburg, a new crimson tea 
rose; Aline Sisley, rosy i)urple; Bella, a pure white; Bon 
Silene, purple carmine; Isabella Sprunt, canary yellow; 
Safrano, orange; Hermosa, pink; Agrippina, bright crimson; 
Climbers; white Lady Banks; yellow Lady Banks, and James 
Sprunt, a crimson rose. The deep pink Scotch Moss rose is 
the best of all, as the whites seldom do well. Of course there 
are dozens of other good roses, as Homer, Madam St. Joseph, 
Gen. Jiicquiminot, Black Prince, and others; but those named 
will form a good list. Scrapings from the chicken-yard make 
the best manure for roses. Every year a bucket-full should 
be dug in around the roots, and the flowers will be of better 
color and substance. 

All summer long there will be something to do in the 
garden. Plants will need trimming, staking, or watering; 
where some die, or stop blooming, others must be ready to 
take their place; cuttings will need attention; there will be 



OF HOBTIOUIjTUBE AND GABDENING. C5 

seeds to save, — in short, gardening is a continual occupation, 
not to be followed by lazy jDeople. After awhile some things 
will grow nearer your heart of hearts than others, and certain 
flowers will begin to predominate. It may be pansies, in 
which case you will buy German seed, Scotch seed, prize 
English, and American seed, planting at all seasons until 
your garden is full of bewitching flower-faces, dainty and 
winsome. Or yours may bo the counterpart of Chriemchild's 
Eose Garden, that enchanted place of legend. Or it may be- 
come a hot-weather garden of Caladiums, Bananas, Cacti, 
Coleus, Echeverias, Sedums, and other succulents — a warm, 
tropical region of gorgeous color and magnificent foliage. 
There is an almost infinite variety possible in our gardens. 

Concerning the garden statuary, ornate fountains, and 
other decorations often seen, there is much to be said. We 
are not larepared to deny that in some styles of gardening 
these expensive affairs may well harmonize. If anywhere, 
they belong to the Italian style, or to the stately Elizabethan 
gardens, and cannot, by any manoeuvering, become a part of 
our daily lives. Earthenware, or bronze satyrs, fauns, 
fountain-pouring nymphs, and blear-eyed watch-dogs, are a 
part of the elder, not of the younger, art of gardening. We 
are glad there are ancient gardens, with moss-grown statues, 
and fountains wonderful even in their ruin. But in this new 
and hopeful land, we shall not copy the dead forms, though 
once so dear to the hearts of men. Here there shall be 
spacious groves, wide lawns, and numberless gardens wherein 
the flowering plants of each broad continent, and of every 
wave-girdled isle, shall give us their varied blooms. Here, 
if indeed we use statues in our gardens, there shall be no 
servile imitations, but our young sculptors shall again em- 
body the breathing shapes of sky, and sea, and wood. 

Concerning rock- work, which, if illy done, is an abomina- 
tion and a terror, this: To pile freshly splintered fragments 
from a quarry, in the middle of a lawn, and, at rare intervals, 
to put a sickly plant, whose abortive efforts to cover the glar- 
ing roots are weak and pitiful— this is a crime against beauty 
and fitness. A pile of naked and shapeless stones to which 



66 PACIFIC kubaij handbook 

no paths lead by natural gradations, and which has not 
visible support and excuse in its surroundings, is not *' rock- 
work" — but rather a cobble-stone mockery. And are we 
to have no rock-work? Of a verity, so only it is well 
done. On the slopes of all our hills there are moss-covered, 
element-worn, grotesque fragments of rock. Limestone, 
sandstone, slate, quartz, and conglomerate, of a great ninge 
of colors, and an infinite variety of shapes, may be found. 
These are the natural material for rock-work. Built up irreg- 
ularly, in the corner of the garden, at the head of a ravine, 
or in the midst of winding paths, a beautiful effect may be 
produced in time. The mossy and wave-beaten sides of rock 
must appear. The crevices must run downwards and towards 
the centre. Vines, succulents, cacti, agaves, yuccas, and 
similar plants must be used, in such abundance as to nearly 
cover the rock-work. A concealed fountain is a very pretty 
adjunct to a piece of rock-work. The so-called Alpine plants 
may be used effectively. On our hills, in our ravines, cling- 
ing to our own rocks, are plants worth our closest attention. 
A few dozen bulbs of either the white or yellow Calochortus, 
Brodea Coccinea, or B. Grandiflorum, or any of our hill- 
side bulbs, if scattered in the crevices of rock-work, will 
bloom every spring, and give us much pleasure. Our native 
Frittelaria, the Dodecatheon, or shooting star, our spicy 
Yerba Buena vine, and, in shady nooks, our native ferns, all 
flourish on well built rock-works. 

Sometimes a person might have a stream in the garden, 
or in some way, a surplus of water, so that a success might 
be made with aquatic plants. No more fascinating division 
of gardening exists. There is a wide range, from the flags 
and reeds of our marshes, to the Victoria Regina water-lily, 
and no one on this coast has yet fairly attempted it. A quiet 
pond of water, with a collection of all the water-lilies known, 
would be worth seeing. The white pond-lily (Nymphaea 
Odorata) is often grown in tubs. The newly discovered 
yellow lily of Florida has bloomed this year, in San Jose. 
The blue African water-lily has not yet been introduced.' 
Our native scarlet Mimulus is a gorgeous bit of color in the 



OP HORTICULTURE AND GARDENING. 67 

edge of a stream. The curious horned water-nut of the 
Chinese (Trapa Bicornis) may be dropped into a tub of 
water half filled with earth, and it will grow, blossom, and 
ripen its curious seeds, called of old " Pythagoras beans." 
Water- grasses are numerous, the Cyperus being prominent. 

Grass for lawns is hard to manage under our hot suns, 
and through our long dry summers. Kentucky blue grass 
fills the bill as well as anything else. Bermuda grass, and a 
creeping Sandwich Island variety, come as visitors, and 
remain abidingly. The T)erfect lawn grass is, so far as our 
knowledge goes, a thing yet to be found. A good and com- 
plete loreparation of the soil is essential to success. Break 
the ground up deeply, jDulverize it thoroughly, manure well, 
let the weeds sprout and destroy them, level the ground, or 
give it a uniform slope. Sow the grass seed evenly, and roll 
heavily. Close pressure of the surface, is the only way to 
insure a stand. If there are bare j^laces, afterwards, scatter 
seed there and mulch with boughs or weeds. Grass must be 
kept growing, and often cut. Spread well rotted manure 
on, every fall. Grub out every weed, and keep the edges 
trimmed. 

Beds for flowers or shrubs, cut in the lawn, have a fine 
effect. Tri-color geraniums, chrysanthemums, fuchsias, roses, 
petunias, tuberous rooted begonias, dahlias, and carnations, 
are admirable for this purpose. Trees, on a lawn, will bear 
closer trimming, and a more formal treatment, than if in 
mixed shrubberies. Bustic seats have an air of hospitality 
and solid comfort withal. 

The enemies of both flower garden and lawn are numerous, 
and, sad to say, increasing. The time was when we could 
read with entire serenity of the insects which prey upon 
vegetable life. But that time is long past. The Codling 
moth is in our apples, the borer in our fruit trees, the grub 
in our strawberries, the woolly Aphis, scale-bug and other 
enemies everywhere, whilst slugs hold High Jinks, and 
Bohemianize in our gardens through the winter and spring 
months. These slugs exist in many unsuspected nooks, and 
<iuietly increase until the garden is alive with them. The 



68 PACIFIC RURAL HANDBOOK 

sharpest of unslacked lime, sprinkled over the ground at 
nightfall, kills all the slugs it touches. Sometimes the lime 
is put in a coarse sack, and beat so as to scatter a fine dust. 
Coal-tar, diluted to the color of weak tea, is highlj^ recom- 
mended. Hand picking is a necessary adjunct. The Coccus, 
or scale-bug, infests oranges, oleanders, myrtles, and most 
hard-wooded plants. It is easily destroyed by an application 
of whale-oil soap, made into strong suds. It should be 
attacked when first observed, and not allowed to increase. 
The small, green Ai)liis, and also a yellow variety, gather on 
plants and vines — notably on the Physianthus Alba : Remedy, 
repetitions of whale-oil soaj3. Antirrhinums, and some other 
plants, are often covered with clusters of caterpillurs. Cut 
these clusters off and burn them at once, unless trouble is 
desired. Sometimes there is a sudden raid of yellow squash- 
bugs. Paris green, sprinkled over the plant in the morning, 
before they can fly, makes them very quiet and harmless — 
kills them in fact. Keep a can of jjrepared wheat poison for 
the benefit of wandering gophers, and a small traj) to set in 
the run-way of moles. Patience and industry will circumvent 
the garden's worst enemies. 



Chapter X. 

SEEDS, AND SEED PLANTING. 

The Way Plants Grow. — Some of the Curious 
Things about Seeds. — Sowing of Flower Seeds. 
— Preparation of Soil. — Planting, and Covering. 
— Tree and Shrub Seeds. — The Critical Periods: 
Subsequent Treatment. — The Three Enemies. 
— The Delight of Success. 

gP HE beginning and the end of plant life are in the seed. 
^ Nothing else is so nearly a miracle as this endless round 
of Nature, from the planted seed of Spring, through the leaf, 
stem, blossom, and forming germ, to the ripened seed of 
Autumn — the hope of another generation. 

In our mild climate, and fertile soil, there is a wonderful 
swiftness about the growth of seeds. Noiselessly, when the 
first rains of our winter come, all the brown slopes thrill and 
quiver with bursting seeds. Noiselessly, too, over our 
new plowed, smoking acres, the promise of the harvest 
awakes, the seeds of old-fashioned flowers, in quaint gardens, 
begin to found their leafy palaces, and rear their tinted spires 
where banners of bloom shall wave hereafter. By our low 
marshes, where tule and Mimulus grow; along our rivers, 
and shores, bright with lupines and gillias; in our deep 
gulches, fit home of Trilliums and Aristolochias, of Caly- 
canthus, Azaleas, aud modest ferns; on our long hillsides, 
and rocky heights, rich with clumps of Ceanothus, sown 
with blue Nemophilas, and planted with countless bulbs — 
everywhere the glad germs waken, and the world laughs 
into leaf and blossom. 

This miracle of germination we have learned to produce 



70 PACrPIO KUBAli HANDBOOK 

at our own will, by imitating Nature's conditions of heat, 
moisture, and darkness. So, mainly by seeds, which retain 
their life for a considerable, though varying period, and can 
be easily transported, we are enabled to possess the plants 
and flowers of every land, — some of them to brighten our 
conservatories, some to give an added grace to the garden, 
and some to become field products, and so increase the wealth 
of individuals and the prosperity of the State. The history 
of the introduction of many seeds, now common, reads like a 
romance— the romance of horticulture. Ardent collectors 
have risked their lives to gather and preserve seeds; the 
strangest accidents have scattered them; they have been 
carried in unknown ways, and have suddenly appeared in 
new places; kings have made treaties for them, and have 
planted them with their own hands. 

But, after wo have thought of the wonderful things con- 
nected with plant-life, we must proceed to put a practical 
point to this chapter of ours. Given the seed — this brown 
mystery — and how shall we set it at work; how shall we 
rouse its downward energies; what are the laws of germina- 
tion? 

In starting seeds, warmth and moisture are the most im- 
portant. These must be applied evenly, steadily, and with 
patience, for they are as necessary to sprouting seeds as pork 
and beans, beans and pork, were to our miners of '49. 

Flower seeds are best sown in boxes two and one half 
inches deep, and one foot in length and breadth. Cut small 
holes in the bottom for drainage, and fill the boxes with pre- 
pared soil. Just here the amateur begins to be puzzled, if 
he has consulted a series of authorities. Peat, loam, silver- 
sand, compost, sods, leaf-mold, variously compounded — 
these look mysterious enough, to be sure! But there is, in 
practice, a simpler way. Take any garden soil as a basis, and 
add Rund to it, and also the light mold from under a rotted 
straw-pile, or from the hollows on the hillsides, where leaves 
drift and decay. Mix well, until you have a light, rich, and 
friable soil. No definite rule respecting the proportions can 
be given, except that the prepared soil should hold moisture 



OP HOETICtTIiTIJEE AND GAEDENINO. 71 

well, should not become hard, and should never crack, even 
if in the sun. 

Fill the boxes carefully with moist, but not very wet 
earth, and with a small board press the soil evenly and 
closely, so that it will retain moisture better. The board 
must be planed on the under-side, or the soil will adhere; 
and it may be convenient to nail on a handle. Sow the seed 
broadcast, if the soil is not weedy, and if you will know the 
plants when they come up; but, in general, it is best to sow 
in marked rows, scattering the seed evenly. 

Now take a sieve, made by tacking a square piece of one- 
eighth inch mesh wire-netting, to a light frame, and sift 
light soil over the box till the seeds are just covered. Take 
the little board again, and press carefully. If any seeds are 
in sight, sift on a little more earth, and press again. Small 
seeds must never be covered more than their own thickness; 
the surface must be level and firm; keep it damp, but not 
dripping, and success is certain. Very fine seed must be 
sown on carefully sifted earth, which has been sprinkled 
before the sowing. The box may then be covered with a 
pane of glass, and occasionally sprayed by a brush dipped in 
water, and drawn lightly across the edge of a stick. When- 
ever a pane of glass is used, over fine seeds, the under-side 
must be wiped every week, or too much moisture will drip 
back and rot the seeds. 

The seed-boxes must be set level, for otherwise the con- 
stant tendency is to wash the seeds to the lower side, and to 
destroy many whilst sprouting. The soil must be equally 
pressed all over, or else watering will cause some portions to 
sink, and form little puddles. The watering must be done 
with a fine rose, held so that the soil does not wash away — 
for this also is a fruitful source of failure. The proper time 
for watering is in the evening or early morning. If the 
boxes at any time look dry, they must, however, be watered, 
and shaded from the direct rays of the sun. 

Tree, and shrub seed, are most conveniently sown in boxes 
two or three feet square, and four inches deep. The soil 
only needs to be rapidly mixed, and pulverized, with a 



72 PACIFIC RUEAIi HANDBOOK 

shovel; thrown into the boxes, pressed, go that no settling can 
occur, and sown broadcast, the seeds being covered witJi finer 
soil. The seeds of conifers, such as juniper, cypress, pine, and 
fir, sprout slowly, and require moisture, light covering, and 
a moist atmosphere. Our best i^lan is to sow conifer seed as 
early as the 1st of December, covering it with fine sand, and 
sheltering with lath. Conifers need i3rotection from the 
direct sun. 

"When the young plants are just coming through the 
ground, afifairs begin to approach a dangerous and trouble- 
some period, which lasts from the time they sprout to the 
appearance of the second leaves. If sowed too thickly, they 
come up in bunches, and lift the soil, thus exjDOsing the 
roots. Hardy plants will survive this soil, with j^roper thin- 
ning out. Tender plants require also a sprinkling of sand, 
to fill the crevices. Sand is also good, if the soil gets too 
wet, and covered with green moss, to dry the surface. If 
young seedlings have too much heat they wither; if too 
much damp, they decay, and suddenly perish; if too much 
shaded, or thickly crowded, they spindle, or become, as 
gardeners express it, "drawn," that is, they increase in 
height without a corresponding strength, the cellular tissue 
being merely lengthened without a gain in width. Light, 
warmth, and only moderate moisture, are the watchwords for 
plants at this period. 

Seedlings of every description ought to stay in the seed- 
boxes until the second leaves appear; and it is usually best 
to leave them until the third or fourth pair of leaves are 
seen, and the stem has become somewhat hard. Plants that 
flower the first season ought then to be spaced in other boxes, 
giving them rather more room than they had before. Tree 
and shrub seedlings may, for the most part, be safely left in 
the seed-boxes for the first year, and then jDlanted in rows in 
the open ground. The palms and Drsecenas must be iDotted 
ofif early, or the roots grow too long to bo handled. The 
blue gum, and most other varieties of Eucalyptus, if sown in 
August, in boxes, or, better still, in sheltered beds in the 
open ground, and spaced once, are fit for planting in the 



OF HOKl'ICUIiTtJEE AND GAtlDENIlJG. 73 

field by spring. The garden flowers, such as carnations, 
asters, balsams, and petunias, will become stocky and fibrous- 
rooted, if several times transplanted. They can be put in 
the garden, in masses, little groups, or as single specimens, 
as preferred. For handling small plants, use a knife-blade, 
or a small trowel, not larger than a teaspoon; for moving 
larger plants, and for garden-work generally, a seven-inch 
steel blade garden- trowel is needed. 

Seeds, though carefully watched, are subject to many 
living enemies. First among the pests may be mentioned 
mice, which are excessively fond of some kinds of seeds, 
notably of blue gum. If they find boxes of this, they will 
scratch up the surface and eat every seed, leaving only the 
fragmentary hulls, as a bitter gibe. Pine-seed is another 
mouse delicacy. A green-house should be made safe against 
mice; and if one sneaks in occasionally, he can be circum- 
vented by trap, or poison. Where seed-boxes are, however, 
set on a porch, or in a shady jplace out of doors, the mice 
often commit depredations. The boxes can be covered with 
glass, or surrounded by strips of tin. 

The small red and black ants are also among the enemies 
of horticulture in general, and of seed-sprouting in particular. 
"We fervently advise every novice in the ancient art of garden- 
ing to study the ways of these restless and impudent rascals. 
If the flavor of any kind of seed suits their fastidious palates, 
they will form in sedate military lines, and carry off every 
seed in the box before you really discover the trick. I believe 
that ants are responsible for at least a few of the failures 
usually attributed to poor seed. If the seeds to which they 
take a fancy are too large for one to shoulder, a number will 
unite, or else they will dig into each one separately, and 
carry off the kernel piece-meal. I have watt^hed several 
minute red ants thus dissecting a Canna seed, and displaying 
as much zeal as if they were scientific men trying to discover 
the secret of life. Now and then they stop to consult, or to 
announce progress, thrusting their attennce close together- 
then, with renewed energy, pushing the work of excavation 

till all the kernel was removed. Against ants, therefore, we 
4 



74 PACIFIC RtJEAIi HANDBOOK 

must (leclaro relentless war. To save the boxes attacked, 
make a heavy mark, with chalk or tar, on the edge of each 
box; trace the marauders to their nests, and soak them out 
with boiling water. Move your boxes and pots occasionally, 
and, if they have started new colonies, make matters un- 
pleasant for them. It is not cruel to the ants, because they 
ought to move out-doors and study Nature. Besides — and 
here is the gist of the matter — we want the flowers. 

Another great danger, which threatens seeds planted in 
the open ground, and more especially coniferous seeds, arises 
from the presence of so many small birds through the winter, 
in our mild climate. Salpiglossis, Nemophila, ten-week 
stock, lobelia, and many other flowers, will bo eaten off as 
soon as they appear. Yegetables will often suffer. Pines 
and cypress, whilst small and tender, will be completely 
destroyed. If it were otherwise, field culture would be the 
cheai^est way of growing our hardy evergreens; but the little 
birds snap them off as soon as they appear, and skip saucily 
on the bushes when the excited owner comes along, to aston- 
ish him with a flood of twitters and a multitude of vibrant, 
melodious calls. The only effectual method of protecting 
conifers is to have a lath-house, or else to use lath frames to 
put over the seed-beds. 

To sum uj) all in a paragraph, the growth of plants from 
the seed requires the utmost patience, and endless vigilance. 
It is the straight- forward, natural way of propagation; but it 
is beset with minor difficulties. No one can start seeds except 
by accident, who does not think of their welfare, and examine 
them daily, and several times a day, until they are up and fit 
to be transplanted. By-and-by you, the young seed lover, 
will learn how long it takes this and that kind of seed to 
germinate; you will know just how they look as they shake 
the soil from their brown garments, and unfold their new 
apparel of green. You will discover that, from their very 
first appearance, no two plants are precisely alike; and you 
will study each successive change with deepening interest. 
So seed planting will become the delight of delights, and 
seed- growth the mystery of mysteries. 



Chapter XI. 
CUTTINGS. 



Nature Provides for many Ways of Increase. — ■ 
Plants may be Grown from Cuttings, Slips, or 
Pipings. — Nurseryman, Florist, and Gardener, 
depend on this System. — The ease with which 
some People Start Cuttings. — The Difficulties 
of Others. — The Practical Divisions of Soft- 
wood, Hard-wood, Leaf, and Root Cuttings. — 
Each one, considered Separately. — Closing 
Hints. — Layers, and the Probable First Sugges- 
tions of Layering. 

y'l^'^ATURE'S principal way of propagating i^lants is, as we 
^i^ Lave previously seen, by the use of seeds. But, in ad- 
dition to this universal method of growth and preservation, 
Nature has given many plants a great and curious power of 
repairing worn tissues, and of making roots where portions 
are broken or separated from the parent stem. An almost 
miraculous power of recuj)erative separate existence is pos- 
sessed by some plants. Sometimes a leaf, a joint of the 
stem, a bud, or scale, laid on moist sand, will first form a 
callus, and then will send forth roots. Sometimes we will 
find two plants of a closely allied species, one of which grows 
easily from cuttings, whilst the other fails entirely. Some- 
times cuttings from the same j)lant vary much in their power 
of rooting. The atmosphere and climatic influences have 
much to do with this. 



76 PAOrPIO EUEAIi HANDBOOK 

In all cases where cuttings can be used, they will be found 
a great advantage to propagators. Plants grown from cut- 
tings usually bloom earlier and more abundantly than those 
grown from seeds. There is also, by the use of cuttings, a 
certainty that the same plant is obtained, as plants from seed 
often vary; but plants grown from cuttings never do, except 
in those extremely rare phenomena, known as '* bud varia- 
tion." 

That system of propagation which consists in rooting a 
piece of a plant, making it to all intents and purposes an 
exact ^ copy of its ancestor, naturally divides itself into a 
number of branches, such as the rooting of the soft ends of 
new shoots, which may be called " slips;" the rooting of 
little side-shoots, such as those pulled from a carnation bush, 
and called " pipings; " and the use of j)ieces of old wood, or, 
technically speaking, cuttings. In addition to these divi- 
sions, the system of " layering," or rooting first, without 
entirely severing the limb, belongs to the same class of pro- 
pagating. 

Fortunately plants which do not seed easily will often 
grow with the greatest ease from cuttings, and so this has 
become the leading method in the treatment of whole classes 
of plants. It is of great value to the commercial florists who 
spread their green-houses over acres of ground, and devote 
miles of glass to roses, fuchsias, smilax, carnations, verbenas, 
bouvardias, begonias, geraniums, and other popular bedding 
and house plants. The enterprising nurseryman, also, pro- 
pagates all he can by means of cuttings, and fills field after 
field with currants, gooseberries, deciduous shrubs, and 
many shade trees, which, under favorable conditions will, in 
many cases root from cuttings. In the piecemeal work of 
even the tiniest city flower-garden, and in the painstaking 
operations of every amateur florist, the secret and the art of 
growing plants from cuttings ought to be acquired at the 
earliest moment. 

It is a good rule to try to root cuttings of everything you 
want, whether the authorities encourage you or not. Thus 
cometh experience, and, at times, an unexpected and wonder- 



OF HOETIOULTUEB AND GABDENING. 77 

fully sweet triumph, when something whicrh every-one said 
would NOT grow from cuttings, did, in some inexplicable 
manner, strike roots and become a thrifty plant. We have 
known mild-mannered and quaintly old-fashionecl old ladies, 
to whom the mysteries of plant-life were as an open book: 
under all seemingly impossible conditions they coaxed and 
persuaded growth out of cuttings which had travelled for 
long distances; their resources and jDatience were inexhaus- 
tible; and so, in the lapse of due alternate seasons of rain and 
sun, their gardens became, at little expense, full of rare and 
beautiful plants, each one interwoven with its own remem- 
brance. There was one lady, in the days of childhood, 
whose garden was a wilderness of delight. She had roses, 
pinks, shrubs, and flowering trees, in almost endless variety; 
and yet, as she afterwards told us, she had never bought a 
plant, but had grown everything from cuttings and slips, 
found in bouquets or given to her by friends, and rooted in 
little saucers of sand set on the kitchen window. 

On the other hand there are people in the world, plenty 
of them — and good jDeople, too — who never seem to have any 
success with cuttings, or any particular reason to give for 
their failures. Every successive spring they visit their 
flower-loving neighbours, and, after loudly expressed admira- 
tion and surprise, beset them for gifts of cuttings, which 
they " will take care of so carefully!" The successful gar- 
deners are somewhat afraid of the results, but good nature 
usually wins, and their visitors wander homewards with 
arms-ful of trimmings and cuttings, and with ears ringing 
with sound horticultural advice. The anxious inquirers 
plant their prizes in hap-hazard fashion, in corners here and 
there, or in boxes and pots, and care for them with a faint- 
heartedness not conducive to final victory. Occasionally a 
few of the cuttings bud, leaf out, and conclude to grow; but 
usually all hope departs utterly as summer advances, and the 
luckless amateur sighs with mournful intonation, " Alas! I 
never did have any luck with cuttings! " 

For such i)eople, of many attemj)ts and failures, and yet 
with earnest horticultural desires, and a most abiding love 
for plants, flowers, gardens, lawns, and such beautiful things. 



78 PACIFIC BUBAL HANDBOOK 

these lines, paragraphs and chapters, were written. There is 
a world of hope for those who study the sources of their 
failures, and the reason of other people's successes. Day by 
day they will win a completer knowledge of the underlying 
principles. Year by year their gardens will grow and bloom 
gorgeously, nor yet without secret places of fragrance. Is 
not all this a consummation worth the earlier struggle ? 

Besides the division, given in a few paragraphs before, into 
cuttings proper, slips, pipings, and layers, or semi-cuttings, 
gardeners have another, and certainly more logical classifica- 
tion. It is usual to say that cuttings are of three kinds — 
leaf-cuttings, root-cuttings, and stem or branch-cuttings. 
Here, then, we have a natural arrangement founded jDiimarily 
on the part of the plant used for propagating. Pieces of 
woody fibre taken from above the surface, are stem-cuttings; 
pieces of woody fibre taken from beneath the surface, are 
root-cuttings; and pieces of leaves, or leaf-stems, are leaf 
cuttings. Stem-cuttings, which embrace by far the largest 
and most universally used class, will admit of a still further 
division into soft-wood and hard-wood cuttings. For bed- 
ding-plants, such as geraniums, heliotroj)es, nasturtiums, 
&c., only the use of soft-wood cuttings can be advised, as 
likely to succeed. Hard-wood cuttings are used for decidu- 
ous shrubs, such as lilacs, syringas, roses; for some evergreen 
shrubs, as laurestinus, euonymus, myrtle; and for some well 
known trees, as poplar, cork-bark elm, and weeping willow. 

Let us return to a consideration of soft-wood cuttings. 
"Whenever the young wood of a shoot is in a brittle, growing 
condition, and will snap evenly across if bent in the hand, 
it is fit for a cutting. If it is allowed to become further 
advanced, and somewhat woody, it is more difficult to root; 
and if in the blooming stage, almost impossible, as a rule, 
although the double geraniums, which are apt to rot ofi*, do 
well, if a flowering-tip is taken. It will, usually, however, 
be found that a short piece of a tender shoot is far preferable. 
Cuttings snai^ped off in this way will not, probably, be over 
two and a half inches long, and often not over half an inch. 
Pinch off the larger leaves, retaining only one pair of small 
ones at the tip. Take sharp, clean sand; put it in a box, pot, 



OF HOBTICULTUEE AND GAKDENING. 79 

or saucer; plant the cutting down about one-third of its 
length; pack the sand nicely around, pressing it firmly, so as 
to touch everywhere, but not so hard as to bruise the bark of 
the tender shoot; then water, and keep the sand so moist that 
the cuttings do not wilt. Florists like to have a bottom heat 
of 65°, and an atmosphere heat of 50" ; but a large number of 
plants may be grown, by any careful person, with the most 
ordinary means, and without any bottom heat whatever. 

Cuttings like company, to a most surprising extent; it is 
therefore best to crowd them closely in a box or pot, and fewer 
proportionately will fail than if they were wide apart. Per- 
haps this idea of mine is a superstition unworthy the pages 
of a prosaic Manual, but it has commended itself skongly in 
frequent experiments with soft-wood cuttings. We might 
add that when soft-wood cuttings appear to mould, drop 
their leaves, and rot, the air is too cold, and the soil too wet. 
Sometimes, if done at once, it saves a cutting to take it out, 
dry it a little while, make a fresh cut at the lower end, and 
try it again in a warmer j^lace. 

We give a partial list of house plants, which can be pro- 
pagated without bottom heat, from soft-wood cuttings. The 
best seasons on this coast are either in April or May, before 
hot weather, or in early fall, although young and thrifty 
shoots are good at any season: 

Plants Easily Grown from Soft-wood 
Cuttings. 

Amaranthus (tri-color), 
Ageratums, 

Begonias (tuberous rooted), 
BrowalHa, 
Coleus, 
Cobea, 
Cupheas, 
Eupatorium, 

Geraniums, Zonale, Lilliputian, 
Ivy -leaf (double, and tri-colors) 
Hoya Carnosa, or Wax Plant, 
Habrothamnus, 
Heliotropes, 



Hydrangeas, 

Libonia Floribunda (sometimes 

called ''Yellow Fuchsia"), 
Myosotis (Forget-me-not), 
Maurandya, 
Pansies, 
Petunias, 
Plumbago, 
Salvias, 
Tradescantias, 
Tropoelums, 
Verbenas. 



80 PACIFIC EUEAL HANDBOOK 

Hard- wood cuttings are to be taken in the fall, and 
planted in the open ground, or in boxes. They should be 
from six inches to a foot in length, laid sloping, with two or 
three buds exposed, and packed closely. The earlier this is 
done the better will be the prospect of success. As soon as 
the leaves of deciduous shrubs have fallen the ground may 
be prepared, and cuttings planted. The use of a pair of 
shears, which j)inch and mangle the wood at the lower end of 
the cutting, is greatly to be depreciated. Only a sharp knife 
ought to be used, and the cuttings ought never to be allowed 
to get dry for a moment. The soil for cuttings of this char- 
acter ought to be a light, sandy loam. When the buds start, 
care must be taken not to rub them off; but when the plant 
is of good size all the branches but one may be cut off, and 
that one trained up to form a good head. We recommend 
great patience with hard-wood cuttings. Even though the 
top appears dead, do not despair, but think of all the plucky 
events of literature. We have known olive cuttings to 
remain in the ground, without a sign of life, for three years, 
at the end of which period they started into action, and aston- 
ished the beholders. Roses are grown in deep boxes of light 
soil, in ]3ots, or in the open ground. Some kinds are very 
difficult to grow from cuttings, but most of them can be so 
grown. The oleander, and the well known lemon verbena, 
seem to require (like the olive) a very great quantity of 
water; in fact, a regular foot-bath, daily. A mulching of 
straw around the cuttings is in many cases of much service. 

Another idea of value to people who wish to keep their 
gardens always renewed and full of shrubs, is to take hard- 
wood cuttings of any favorite shrub in fall or early winter, 
and plant them in little groups of half a dozen, where you 
want bushes to grow. Nothing imaginable can be much 
easier than to do this, and worry no further on the subject. 
But if, as sj)ring advances, you find that several have grown, 
all except one can be removed or destroyed. Thus, in a 
rapid, lazy, and inexpensive way, you will be able to replace 
old, moss-grown and insect-covered shrubs with young and 
healthy ones; and anything of value once procured can be 
kept in the garden. Olianthus, Oestrum, Wigelia, and 



OF HOBTICULTUKE AND GARDENING. 81 

many other species, can easily be propagated by this group- 
ing system. 

Boot-cuttings are almost the only method with some 
species. The efficacy of this kind of cutting is owing to the 
presence of small, dormant buds, along the roots, which, 
under favorable conditions will become sprouts, or " suckers." 
It is rather a dangerous tendency in a plant, if carried to 
an excess. Many of our most vicious and unendurable weeds 
are mainly troublesome on account of their root propagation. 
But some plants, by no means weeds, are best increased by 
this system. Of this class are the Bouvardias, whose clusters 
of waxen white, rose, crimson, or intense scarlet flowers, are 
BO valuable for decoration; the chocolate-red flowered Caly- 
canthus, or spice- wood; the winter-blooming dwarf and 
showy Japan quince; the large-flowered Anemone Japonica; 
some of the trees, as Paulonia Imperialis, and others. The 
roots may be sown on the surface of a box of sand, covered 
lightly, and kept moist and warm. It is customary to cut 
them into short pieces. After they have sprouted there will 
probably be a chance to make still further divisions, and 
obtain a plant from nearly every joint. Koot-cuttings, when 
at all successful, are a wonderfully rapid method of pro- 
cedure. 

Leaf-cuttings, though of a narrow application, must ever 
awaken a strong sense of curiosity and interest. It is strange 
to reflect on that unity of parts in a plant whose leaf can root, 
form a stem, and so in time become competent to run its own 
establishment. Then, too, the multifarious ways in which 
different leaves do this deserves careful study. For instance, 
Bryophyllum Calycinum, a succulent and rapidly growing 
plant, has leaves which will root at the edge, and form num- 
berless small plants. Some of the begonias have thick leaves 
which will form a root, and send a stem from the base of the 
old leaf-stem; the leaf then dies, and the new stem soon 
becomes a large plant. A cactus leaf buds from the end and 
becomes a part of the new plant. If space permitted, many 
curious examples of leaf propagation might be given. 

Leaf-cuttings require much more attention, to prevent 



82 PACIFIC RURAL HANDBOOK. 

** damping off," than stem-cuttings do. Begonia leaves must 
be cut -with half un inch of the stalk: sink this in pure sand, 
letting the leaf lie on the top, but slanting it a little, so that 
water will run off, and not rot the leaf. If leaves arc scarce, 
the leading mid-rib may be cut in several places, when it is 
likely that a plant may be formed at each joint. Succulents, 
such as the Echeverias, Cacti, &c., should be well wilted in 
the sun for several days before they are put in the cutting 
box. Otherwise they will ignominiously decay. 

With reference to cuttings of every kind, a few hints may 
be useful. An even temperature is very desirable; sudden 
changes are ruinous. The sand should be a little dry on top, 
but moist underneath. The leaves should not wilt, or the 
stems curl up. When a callus is formed on the end of the 
cutting the first step of the process is over; but wait until 
roots of half an inch in length are formed, and then pot the 
young plant off in a light sandy loam, shifting it as soon as 
it fills the j)ot, or x^lanting it in the open ground. 

Layers are a method of aiding Nature in the formation of 
a new plant, by bending down the lower limbs of a tree or 
shrub, and fastening in a little trench, cutting the limb 
nearly through, so that roots may more readily start. A 
piece of copper wire twisted around the limb is quite as use- 
ful in stopping the flow of sap, and aiding roots. We may 
suppose that the first savage gardener, in pre-historic times, 
were led to practice the art of layering by observing how 
often a sudden freshet along a river bank bends over some 
limb of a tree, twists and mangles it, piles silt and decayed 
leaves over it, and then retires, leaving the branch to root 
itself and grow vigorously, soon rivaling even its parent tree. 
To observations of this character, made in the wide field of 
Nature, it is probable that we owe the guiding principles of 
the art of gardening. 



Chapter XII. 

WINDOW PLANTS, HANG- 
ING BASKETS, AND FERNERIES. 



Conservatory Gardens: The Highest Type. — A 
Love of Flowers in the Homes of the Poor. — • 
How to Make Window-boxes. — What Plants to 
Use, and how to Take Care of them. — House 
Plants, for Winter and Summer. — Hanging 
Baskets, how to Make, and how to Keep in 
Order. — The Best Plants for Baskets. — Fern- 
eries and Jardinieres: Treatment, and Suitable 
Plants. 

Plants in the House. 

yfN our climate, all those fortunate people who have ground 
(?P for an out-door garden, may well get along without the 
trouble and expense of a window-garden, which is at best 
only a substitute for the real thing. But many who live in 
cities have no garden room whatever, and so must cherish a 
fe\V plants in window or conservatory. 

In the conservatory, gardening becomes a romance, and is 
far removed from the common earth; x>lants are taken away 
when they fade, and others brought in; a fountain perhaps 
sings forever, in delicious iteration ; gold fish swim in their 
crystal globe, under the shadow of lily leaves; birds twitter 
in satisfied content; bronze- winged butterflies pause on the 
changeful green of a broad banana — a contrast of color fit for 



84 PACIFIC RUEAL HANDBOOK 

a watching artist: such is the highest type of house gjirclen- 
ing. But still there may bo more pathos about the stunted 
plants, in some wretched, sunless alley, cared for by a pale 
and dying child, or by a sad-faced and hopeless woman, to 
whom all her childhood's memories of woods and flowers 
must speak through the leaf of one geranium — tha flower of 
one daisy. 

Window gardening is one of the divine arts, and must 
have been invented for the sake of city dwellers, that they 
might in some degree learn to love Nature's grace and quiet 
delights. It is best to use a window with a southern or south- 
eastern exposure, if possible, for only a limited range of plants 
succeed in the northern windows. A strong wooden box 
may be fastened securely to the window-sill outside, and 
filled with good rich earth, which may be had by mixing the 
sifted street sweepings, or the dust of a road, with half its 
weight of sand. The box will last much longer if it is lined 
with tin, making holes for drainage. The outside may be 
covered with rustic work, or with oilcloth, but the vines will 
soon hide it. Costly and beautiful window-boxes of earthen- 
ware, iron, and stained wood, maybe bought, if desired. 

Now, what shall we plant in our mute and empty box, so 
that it shall speak to us of cool woods and fragrance, of rest 
and patience ? Well, first, is the box in the sun daily ?— 
then we can have flowers, and brilliant markings on the 
leaves. If it is mainly in the shade we must have fewer 
flowers, and soberer colors. Second: is the box to be kept 
pretty dry, or reasonably moist, or very wet?— because in 
each separate case it will require an altogether difi'erent set 
of plants. In a shady i:)lace, the ferns, daisies, double violets, 
pansies, primulas, and Tradescantias, do well. The Echeve- 
rias, Sedums, and other succulents, prefer a dry, sunny 
place; and an Agave or Yucca may be used as a centre-piece. 
An investment of five cents in Single Portulacca seed, or, 
better yet, of fifteen cents in double seed, would fill a window- 
box with beauty and color all summer. In a reasonably 
moist box belong Coleus (if warm enough) , Zonale geran- 
iums, blue lobelia edgings, a smilax, to run on strings, and 



OF HOBTICULTUEE AND GAEDENING. 85 

net the window with its graceful loops. And, if we use Galla 
lilies, we shall find that they need quantities of water. 

Eouse i^lants may be kept in pots or boxes, jolaced on a 
shelf or table near the window, in a well aired room. The 
surface of the pots must be kept stirred, and free from weeds 
and moss. Give the plants a thorough watering, and then 
leave them until the surface looks dry again. Pick off tho 
dead or decaying leaves, and the faded flowers; if mould 
appears, the place is too cold and damp; if the leaves curl 
and fall, it is too hot and dry. Pinch back the shoots of 
fuchsias, geraniums, coleus, &c., so as to keep them compact. 
Florists have a bad trick of running them up tall and slender 
so as to save room in the greenhouse; when you buy plants 
get stocky ones, with short joints, and dark leaves. Set the 
pots in saucers, and a little apart, so as to allow a free circu- 
lation of air. Turn the plants half way around every few 
days, or they will grow one-sided. Keep a saucer of wet sand 
on the window-sill, and start slips of your choicest plants. 

If plants seem to do poorly, try the effect of warm water, 
night and morning. Wash the leaves occasionally with warm 
soap-suds. Little white scales often appear, as a result of ill 
health, and must be washed off with whale-oil soap. A quart 
of lime in eight or ten gallons of water will destroy the 
common angle worm, often so annoying in pots. 

There are so many plants well adapted to house culture 
cnat it is hard to select the best. Two at least of the Abuti- 
lons, the Boule de Niege, pure white, and Mesopotamicum, 
yellow and red, small leaves, are valuable. Most of the 
flowering begonias do well. B. Fuchsoides is perhaps tho 
best to begin with. The Begonia Eex are grown chiefly for 
their foliage. Crassula Cordata is a good small succulent, 
which has white flowers in spikes. The Epiphylums, or 
lobster-leaved cacti, are constant favorites. They require 
light soil, and a period of rest. The Euonymus will succeed 
at a north window, and the fuchsias only need a little sun, 
but easily become pot-bound. Among the best fuchsias will 
be found Aurora, Beacon, Arabella Improved, Dictator, Gem, 
Princess Alice, Elm City, Double White, Tower of London, 



86 



PACIFIO KUBAL HANDBOOK 



Roderick Dhu, Tribune, Maximum, and Vainquer De 
Puebla. 

When we begin to consider the geraniums, they appear 
too numerous to mention; and hardly anyone really pretends 
to grow them all. Jean Sisley and Master Christine aie two 
of the best Zonales. The doubles do well in boxes almost 
anywhere. The ivy-geraniums are unsurpassed for house 
culture, being valuable both for leaf and flower. Fairy Bells, 
with violet and white flowers; Diadem, deep crimson; Inno- 
cence, pure white; and L'Elegante, with dark leaves bordered 
with white — these are the best known. The Primulas, or 
Chinese primroses, do admirably in the house, and stay in 
bloom for months. Cinnerarias, taken from the greenhouse 
when just opening, are very satisfactory. The Smilax, and 
the Lygodium Scandens, or climbing fern, are of easy cul- 
ture, and form graceful festoons. The wax i3lant (Hoya 
Carnosa) ,and the variegated English ivies, are good climbers 
for the house. The hybrid Tropoelums have a rare bril- 
liancy, and a heliotrope is never out of place. 



Hanging Baskets. 

Not only the gardenless dwellers in cities, but also all 
flower loyers, everywhere, admit the expressiveness of a well 
arranged hanging basket. Indeed it is often the villagers 
and the country jDeople with plenty of room for an out-door's 
garden, the busy farmers' wives, and the coquettish country 
maidens, who know how to improvise a basket and fill it with 
the most available plants, quite as well as their city relations. 
The wire of an old hoop-skirt, bent into a rude basket, lined 
with moss and planted with " Wandering Jew;" the rude 
box, coverad with cones and bits of twisted root, half hidden 
by the leaves of German ivy; the log-cabin affair built up of 
sticks nailed together in rustic fashion, and filled with bright 
lobelia; even the scooped-out crown of a carrot, inverted, by 
the window, and kept full of water— these, although cheap 
and common, are none the less real forms of beauty, and lead 



OP HOBTICUIiTUKE AND GARDENING . 87 

to better things. Whoever loves a flower has a daily teacher, 
persistent and kind. 

The best baskets for general use are those made of wire, 
in rather close loops, and lined with moss. If you put the 
plants in yourself, arrange them first, grouping them over 
and over, until you are sure they will look well in the basket. 
Then take moss, in as large pieces as possible, dampen it, and 
press it firmly in the basket, leaving a hollow for the soil 
centre. The moss must not be over half an inch thick. 
Take rich earth, and press it in quite firmly, so that it will 
not wash out. Get the plants in with the earth, and leave the 
surface level. Cover it with moss, and soak the basket. Soak 
it whenever it seems dry, and sprinkle the moss often. In 
the earthenware and rustic pots you must see that there is 
enough drainage, which they often lack. In arranging a 
basket, do not fill it too full, but allow for the growth of the 
plants. Let them mingle and cluster as they will, only 
pinching off too vigorous shoots, now and then. Watch for 
weeds, which are often in the moss, and pull them up at 
once; but if you get bits of fern, which the mountain-moss 
often has, let them alone, and rejoice. The best time to 
start hanging baskets is with the first rains, hanging them 
out- doors, but bringing in when a frost is threatened. 

The plants used in a basket must harmonize perfectly in 
form, proportion, leaf, stem, growth and blossom. Plants 
which look well enough side by side in the garden will not 
endure the closer companionship of the vase or basket. 
Every little weakness and coarse feature of a plant are 
revealed, and, it is fair to add, its latent possibilities of 
good, also. The variegated Solanum, and the Tradescantias, 
have much more brilliant leaves when used as trailers for 
a rather dry basket, than in any other position. We do 
not need uniformity in a basket, but a nice relative balance 
and harmony. One color in flowers is enough; or, if two are 
used, one of them must be white. In respect to leaves, beauty 
of form is better than beauty of dolor, though we may often 
combine both. If the central plant, which must bo the largest, 
has branches of a drooping habit, as the Begonia Fuchsoides, 



88 PACIFIC ruraij handbook 

the same fountain-like plan may be carried out to the edge 
of the basket, with fine effect. When a plant with upright 
leaves is placed in the centre, the change from that to the 
trailers at the edge must not be too sudden, and plants of a 
half-drooping habit may make the transition. 

A basket of eight inches in diameter may contain: Be- 
goniaFuchsoidesAlba; pink Primula; Eranthemum Argentea, 
a handsome plant, with white on the leaves; and a vine of 
Smilax, of which three stems can be trained up the wires, 
and the rest brought around the edge of the basket, and 
allowed to trail over. Another combination will embrace 
Coleus, Ivy geranium (holly wreath) , and a little Saxifrage. 
One Yucca, or Dracena, surrounded by variegated Ice Plant, 
interminged with blue Lobelia, makes a good basket for a 
sunny place. The Yuccas, Agaves, Cacti, Echeverias, Sem- 
pervivums, and in general, the plants known popularly as 
" succulents," are natives of dry and rocky regions — hence 
they are extremely useful for vases on the lawn, baskets on 
the porch, rockwork, and sloping beds. In places of com- 
parative shade, the ferns, mimulus, pansies, violets, Fragaria 
Indica (a species of strawberry) , and most of the Ali^ine 
plants, may be used. 

Among the new plants, for baskets, the Begonia Glauco- 
phyla Scandens, a bright leaved trailer with panicles of 
salmon flowers, must take high rank. Nertera Depressa, a 
creeping plant with dark leaves and red berries, and also 
Torrenla Asiatica, having brilliant blue flowers, should be 
widely used. JEschynanthus Zebrinus grows about one foot 
high, has flowers of bright scarlet, and leaves of light green 
striped with dark, above, and crimson beneath. It requires 
light soil, and also grows on old stumps or roots. Campsid- 
ium Filicifolium is a new climber, with pale leaves, like the 
fronds of a fern. 



Wardian Cases. 

Wardiau cases, jardinieres, and ferneries, add much to the 
beauty of a parlor, or sitting-room, are more easily cared for 



OF HORTICULTUEE AND GARDENING. 80 

than plants in pots, or hanging baskets, and enable us to 
succeed with the denizens of the deep woods, and the tropic 
islands. Any receptacle to hold earth, covered with a closely- 
fitting glass case, gives the essential warmth and moisture. 
The Wardian cases are shaped like a box, having glass top 
and sides and a wooden tray, lined with zinc. Any good 
carpenter can make one. The glass must be set in the frame 
without the use of putty. The jardinieres have a circular 
base covered with a bell glass. Either form may be used for 
a fernery. Use light soil composed of sand mixed with leaf- 
mold; water when the plants are put in; close the glass, and 
only lift it when moisture accumulates on the inside. Water- 
ing need not be repeated oftener than once a month. Here, 
in your little glass case, you will have an epitome of the 
atmospheric changes going on about us: moisture rising, 
condensing, falling back in miniature rain; and so repeating 
the process forever. 

The best plants we can find will be those which love moist 
and shady places. Dwellers in the forest or mountains need 
only take a trip along the nearest ravine to find little black- 
stemmed ferns, Mimulus, Oxalis, Saxifrage, our native Anag- 
allis, and other inexpensive yet priceless plants. If we pur- 
chase cultivated plants, the Begonia Rex, with its numerous 
varieties of ornamental leaves, will deserve attention. The 
Fittonias are low plants with curious veined leaves, ULited 
with red, pink, or white. Aspidistra Curida has bright green 
leaves, and the odd habit of producing its flowers under- 
ground. The Peperomias have clusters of striped leaves. 
The Lycopodiums are charming in form and color. Ferns, 
also — teachers of beauty in form, possessors of grace untold, 
cherished darlings of nature and of poetry — are the chief 
dependence of our moist Wardian cases. Adiatum Cuneatum; 
A. Pubescens, and A. Pedatum; Pteris Macrophyla, and P. 
Serrulata; the Lastreas and the Gymnogrammas, are all desir- 
able. These are pretty hard names; but fortunately names 
are the only hard thing about ferns, which only need shade 
and moisture to grow delightfully. The Adiatums are called, 
popularly, "Maiden Hair Ferns," and there are many species, 



90 PACIFIC KURAIi HANDBOOK. 

and some natives, worth cultivating. Search the ravines in 
spring; wander along the water-courses; go and see what 
ferns grow by the margin of the spring. If you cannot afford 
to buy costly exotic ferns, depend entirely on our wild 
species. Even if you have the greenhouse and window- 
garden varieties, do not neglect the mountains, or the moun- 
tain ferns. Whoever searches for ferns finds out the secrets 
of Nature, and acquires the peacef ulness of pleasant places, 
where there is never any fret or jar, and where the tired way- 
farer may gather new strength for earth's many toils. 






Chapter XIII. 



A SMALL GREENHOUSE. 



The Comfort of having a little Greenhouse. ~ 
Early Enthusiasm.— Changeableness of many 
Greenhouse Owners. — Their Frequent Failures. 
— The Mournful Tale of a Friend. — The First 
Rule is not to Grow too many Kinds. — The 
Second Rule is to give Constant Attention. — 
Liquid Manure. — Potting Plants. — Watering. — 
Hanging Baskets. — Autumn Work. — A Digres- 
sion concerning Mangoes. — Begonias. — Other 
Greenhouse Plants. 



^1 N our climate, where no artificial heat is needed in -winter, 
(9^ a small greenhouse or conservatory might be made an 
adjunct to all lovers of flowers, furnishing a constant variety 
of leaf and blossom. Many things which we cannot safely 
leave out of doors all winter, can be potted and brought in. 
We may grow Camellias, Azaleas, Primulas, Cyclamens, 
Cinnerarias; vines innumerable; the tuberous Begonias; 
Coleuses; even, as we feel on firmer footing, and begin to 
know plants better, the grand spotted Caladiums, the Glox- 
inias, and the Calceolarias. "We may start all our seeds in 
safety and comfort, stock our garden, and supply our neigh- 
bors occasionally. 

The ardent lover of flowers, who has, after months of con- 
triving, built his own conservatory, and is beginning to stock 
it, wanders about, on rare plants intent, visiting his amateur 



92 PAOIfIC EUBAIi HANDBOOK 

neighbors and the nearest nurseries, questioning and taking 
copious notes with a new and laudable enthusiasm. A green- 
house in the New England States means a much greater 
expense, and probably yields a much greater pleasure than 
here. Still the latent possibilities of a greenhouse, even here, 
are wonderful. The owner thereof may luxuriate in tropic 
fruits, and grapes out of due season, or he may revel in masses 
of bloom, vines of the sunny islands, orchids of equatorial 
forests, gorgeous exotics whose radiant colors seem to flash 
and move as the living hues of some unresting bird of Para- 
dise; or he may, in some quieter mood, despise the sensuous 
attractions of color, and hide his fancies in wildernesses of 
ferns, beneath leaves drooping and fronded, leaves of untold 
variety and endless beauty. 

Some of the happy owners of a few square feet of glass, 
are, under the varied attractions of many classes of plants, 
everything by turns, and nothing long. With each revolving 
year their small greenhouses suffer marvelous changes. At 
one time this hobby of theirs is called "cacti "—a hobby of 
wrinkles and innumerable thorns, sjDines, and bristles; of 
long months of silence and <xuiesence, then of sudden, irre- 
pressible brilliancy and warm, scentless color. At another 
time, the dynasty of the cacti having been dethroned, azaleas, 
and their neighbors among the hard- wooded shrubs, become 
dominant in our imaginary greenhouse. Instead of growing 
larger, the azaleas, after one or two seasons, begin to lessen 
materially; hopes of rivaling the grand specimens of English 
conservatories slowly perish; there are dead azaleas some- 
where, and a new king begins to reign. Now all this is well 
enough so long as i)eople fancy it. To buy unsuitable plants, 
or plants whose treatment you do not understand, is a jjrolit- 
able affair for the nurseryman, and an interesting process for 
the owner, whose greenhouse, unless he is careful, will soon 
assume the proportions of a surprisingly portly elephant on 
his hands. 

Said a brisk friend of mine, lately, surveying his scantily 
filled greenhouse of eight by fourteen feet dimensions: 

' * That is a pretty, a very jDretty glass house. But I can't 



OP HOETIOULTUEE AND GAEDENINQ. 93 

keep anytliing alive very long. Some things kick once, and 
then go; others stagger along under their many infirmities 
until a kind Providence ends the struggle." 

** What have you bought and tried here? " I asked, as I 
surveyed the dusty benches, the moss-covered pots, the fallen 
leaves, the air of helpless innooency expressed. 

*' Everything," said my friend, with an inimitable mixture 
of sigh, look, shrug, and intonation. " Everything to be 
bought, begged or stolen. I've ravaged the florist establish- 
ments, the nurserymen know my steps — and I know their 
bills. I don't blame them. I seemed to have good plants. 
But, as I once heard an old fellow remark, ' 'Pears like I 
doan't hev no kind o' luck in this here transaction.' " 

So we looked into matters. We found that my friend was 
trying to raise too many kinds of plants in one greenhouse; 
for, as a matter of course, plants which must have different 
degrees of heat cannot jDOSsibly be well grown in the same 
room. Just here is the primary need of successful green- 
house work. Everything cannot be grown in one house, 
though a great many widely differing plants may be kept a 
short time in the same greenhouse. Florists give the different 
classes of plants a different treatment, and, when possible, a 
separate house. Amateurs must take a leaf from their book, 
and try to grow plants according to divisions made, not 
botanically, but on the basis of the degree of heat required 
for healthy growth. Some one plant must be taken as the 
standard in each small greenhouse, and the conditions 
studied until that plant grows well; then other plants of 
similar habits may one by one be added until the benches are 
full of healthy plants. 

Then, when one class of plants is decided upon, it is folly 
to change the type too often. If there is to the rightly bal- 
anced mind any pure delight, it is to slowly but surely 
obtain those lasting plants which, when once obtained, will 
improve for a term of years, and which everybody does not 
have. If fuchsias are chosen (and fuchsias possess many 
charms for a small greenhouse) , there is much pleasure in 
obtaining all the new varieties, in treating them so as to have 



94 PACIFIC BtJEAL HANDBOOK 

a succession of bloom, and in exi)erimenting with seedlings, 
and other novelties. If Caladiums, Crotons, and stove plants 
form the basis, a more tropical display will be possible, and 
much closer attention will be needed. If orchidaceous plants 
are predominant, few others will thrive; and if the evergreen 
shrubs form the tyi^e they will need a distinct treatment. 

The " secret of secrets," is constant attention. Twenty 
times a day the florist is in and out of his greenhouse, watch- 
ing the condition of his plants, changing the temperature, 
moving pots, shading seeds, and studying the laws of germ- 
ination and growth. It is this continual presence of some one 
which has much to do with the care of plants; and this explains 
the success of many ladies. "We have known garden-loving 
ladies in whose hands were magic — for whom Coleuses came 
true, seeds always germinated, and healthy plants, laden with 
abundant bloom, crowned their efforts. The owner of a small 
greenhouse should visit it daily, at least; five minutes twice 
a day is far better than five hours weekly. There will be 
some plant to train or trim, water, or re-pot. A greenhouse 
gives endless occupation. 

Liquid manure is good for plants in pots, if it is properly 
diluted. Palms, and most tropical plants, can hardly have 
too much. When the surface of a pot becomes covered with 
a green moss it has had too much water, and must be stirred 
uj), and allowed to dry some. Frequent stirring of the soil 
in pots is of great benefit. The question of how much water 
a plant will stand is a very critical one. When the soil looks 
white on the top, and feels dry, soak that pot. The first rule 
is — don't water too often. The second rule is — don't even 
sprinkle merely, but wet thoroughly. On these two jjrecepts 
hang theory and practice. In the course of time a person 
becomes able to tell from the color of a plant's leaves whether 
its water supply is properly regulated. Some plants, as the 
Hydrangeas, can stand almost an unlimited amount. 

When the roots grow through it is well to turn the plant 
out, and, if the pot is full of roots, it will need re-potting, in 
a pot only one size larger. It is quite an enterprise to get 
suitable potting-earth. Ordinary soil will not do without 



OP HOKTIOULTURE AND GARDENING. 95 

adding other substances. A good sandy loam is a satisfactory- 
basis; to this add leaf-mold, or well decayed straw, or rotted 
sods, and mix them thoroughly. Burnt earth from a fire, or 
an old kiln, is of much value for ^Dotting. If the soil is 
stiff, sand must be added. A pile of clean, sharp sand is an 
essential adjunct of every greenhouse. In potting, as in 
other horticultural work, it will often happen that seemingly 
small causes greatly vary the results. Very much often 
depends on the amount of pressure given to the soil. Some 
things require tight potting, laugh at and enjoy it. Othera 
are impatient of more than a tap on the bench to settle the 
earth around the roots. The Pelargoniums like close work; 
the ferns, Mimulus, &c., should be potted loosely. This is 
one of the things ** no fellow can find out," without experi- 
ence. In re-potting, never wait till the roots are hard and 
woody. Let them be well matted, but soft, or the knife will 
have to be uced, to start a healthy growth. Watch fuchsias, 
and re-pot them frequently, or they will not bloom freely. 
In potting, the soil needs to be pressed closely to the roots of 
the plant. Some plants will move or re-pot with much 
greater ease than others. A stiff and spiny cactus, for in- 
stance, is a ferocious and often tearful thing to handle. Then 
the largest pot seems inadequate, and the spiciest language 
weak. 

The plants shoidd be as close as possible to the glass, and 
occasionally turned about, to keep them growing straight. 
In a conservatory, a new grouping, almost daily, is possible. 
To have a plant in a pot is to have a movable piece of out- 
doors; and consequently few combinations are possible. This 
is true, to a peculiar degree, of the arrangement of hanging 
baskets. The variety of possible effects is truly wonderful. 
Your basket may be simple or profuse, modest or gorgeous, 
subdued or overwhelming. It is a good plan to select the 
plants needed, take them to the jDotting-bench, and then 
group them until the desired effect ii produced. It is un= 
pleasant, or mildly absurd, to have too many colors or styles 
of foliage mingled in the same basket. We should choose 
some one thing to give the needed impression, and let the 



96 ^ PACrPIO RURAL HANDBOOK 

rest become subordinate. Now and then we may find a basket 
in which the art is hidden. It is a bit of Nature, full of sim- 
plicity. A hand's breadth will cover it, and yet there seem 
to be cool depths where fancies wander with idleness and 
sweet content; where it is as a fragment of the deepest 
ravines, cool, and full of quietness. Such a basket was 
planned by some one in a mood of happiness, and willing 
Nature seconded his thought. 

In the autumn months the owner of a small greenhouse 
must sow seeds of annuals for winter-blooming. Without 
proper forethought there will come a most dismal and blos- 
somless time— later. A great many seeds, particularly of the 
perennials, seem to do much better if sown in the autumn days, 
or in late summer. The conservatory is a place where very 
entrancing experiments with seeds and plant-growth may be 
made. To obtain seeds from some uni3ronounceable province 
of earth; to study their peculiarities of germination, and to 
watch their progress, are all extremely pleasant things. Yet 
unpleasant recollections will occasionally cling to some of a 
person's first seed experiments. 

Not long ago I noticed that the earth in a certain pot was 
cracking, and a pair of dark green stems were mounting 
towards the light. And this is the story thereof: 

From boyhood my dreams have clung about the tropics, 
with their mellow skies, placid seas, and coral isles; their 
gorgeous birds, deadly reptiles, savage animals, quivering 
volcanic mountains; but, most of all, their strange spotted 
orchids, fruits of unknown but doubtless delicious flavor, and 
forests wierd, tangled, full of voices continually. My earlier 
two-bit pieces of childhood were spent in making surre^Dtiti- 
ous purchases of supposedly choice tropical fruits. A stale 
pine-apple, a spoilt cocoanut, and a speckled banana, are 
grewsome remembrances, and shook my faith in desert-island 
romances. Only last summer a smooth-faced Italian dealer 
sat behind a box of yellow, bean-shaped fruit, which he 
volubly explained to the passers by — were genuine Isthmus 
mangoes. Now, mangoes and mangroves were rather con- 
fused in my earlier fancies; I had a dim idea that oysters 



OF HOETICULTtrUE AND GARDENING. 97 

clung to the twisted roots, and fruit of Sybaritic flavor grew 
among tlie glossy leaves. So I yielded to the voice of the 
charmer; I bought— I am ashamed to say how many; I 
walked down the street with an air of superiority to the 
common herd, none of whom had genuine mangoes; I went 
on the ferry-boat, and sought a secluded corner. It is quite 
impossible to speak of what followed. The taste and smell of 
turpentine and other vicious drugs are concentrated in the 
mango. It is not an advisable article of food. I have since 
learned that it should be peeled, and dropped into fresh 
•water, to remove these flavors; but on this occasion I dropped 
them into salt water immediately, reserving only two for 
planting. They came up soon, have grown thriftily, and are 
so ornamental, that I have forgiven them. Thus endeth this 
lengthy digression, the moral of which is that it is well to 
own a small greenhouse, or a wee conservatory corner — for 
otherwise this mango speculation would have been a total 
loss. 

A greenhouse might be made very beautiful by calling it 
a " Begoniarum," and proceeding to collect each and every 
species and hybrid obtainable. Begonias are the most refined 
of plants, and vary greatly in leaf and flower. No other one 
class of soft-wooded plants presents greater attractions. "We 
mention Begonia "Weltoniensis, a summer bloomer; B. Palm- 
ata; B. Picta; B. Glaucophyla Scandens, a fine trailer; B. 
Tachsoides, an old favorite; B. Semperflorens, excellent for 
baskets; B. Odorata, with large, white flowers; the foliage, 
or Rex Begonias, and the large-flowered, tuberous-rooted 
section embracing many shades and colors. 

Among hard-wooded shrubs we would mention Daphne 
Odorata, and D. Rubra; Dracaena Ferrea, Tri-color, and 
Indivisa; the Ericas, or Heaths; the Bouvardias — white, 
pink, rose-colored, and scarlet. Soft-wooded plants, of 
value, are — Cinnerarias; Cupheas; Justicias; Primula Sinen- 
sis, both single and double; winter-blooming carnations; 
Cereus Grandiflorum; Echino-cacti; Epiphyllums; Semper- 
vivums; Crassulas, and other succulents. A few hyacinths, 
Amaryllises, Clyclamens, Tropoelum, Tri-colorum, and T, 



98 



PACIFIC RURAL HANDBOOK. 



Pentaphylum bulbs, may easily be grown. Ferns may fill 
up the shady corners; vines of Passifloras, Hoya Garnosa, 
Maurandyas, &c., may cover each pillar and wall; Lycopo- 
diums may carpet the ground. After all, much variety is 
possible, with due care and attention to details, and personal 
interest in the work. 



Chapter XIV. 



OUR HORTICULTURAL FUTURE. 



Enthusiasm in some Degree Pardonable. — Our 
Latent Resources. — We need not Despond. ^ — 
The Wide Meaning of Horticulture. — The Im- 
pression which a Florist's Establishment would 
make on a Savage. — Horticultural Develop- 
ment of the last Half Century. — Its Refining 
Influence. — This is an Age of Homes. — The 
Work of Botanist and Nurseryman. — New Plants 
to be Discovered. — The Gradual Increase of 
Horticultural Sentiments. — What America may 
Become. — The New Eden. — What is Possible 
here in Calilornia. 



fNTHUSIASM is the birthright of youth, and of young 
communities. Hopefulness is its own best reason . It 
may be that Californians have too much self-confidence, and 
too precise an acquaintanceship with the mouthpieces of 
metaphorical trumpets; but yet none of all our visitors have 
ever pictured in too glowing colors the vast undeveloped 
resources of these Pacific States. It is true that many hc.vo 
"written too hastily, or are influenced by personal considera- 
tions; but on the whole the record of our visitors is a good one, 
and the lapse of time will doubtless fulfil every prognostica- 
tion. If it is, on the one hand, true that the greater portion of 
the surface of our State is mountainous, and much of it for- 
ever unfit for the plow, it is also, on the other hand, equally 
true that our arable lands are surpassed in fertility by none 



100 



PAOIPIO BUEAIi HANDBOOK 



others in the world. This, taken in connection with our 
mines of precious metals and other minerals, our miles of 
durable pastures, our yet untouched forests, and, more than 
all, our immense water privileges, and possibilities of irriga- 
tion, must encourage every toiler to lay broad and deep 
foundations for the days that are most assuredly coming— 
the days of a vast and thriving population. Our cities shall 
be manufacturing and commercial centres, yet not over- 
grown, but fed and sustained by lesser towns, villages, farms, 
and countless other industries. 

Too many people amuse themselves, in these days, by 
gloomy prognostications of our political and industrial 
future; we have too many prophets of evil and voices of 
despair; it is time for a brighter gospel, a more hopeful 
vision. Whilst we recognize the fact that this age, like all 
that have preceded it, has its own mighty problems to solve, 
its own path to hew, let us gladly meet them with faith and 
courage. The mission of the Anglo-Saxon race is not yet 
accomplished; hardly is it fully begun. If there be any such 
thing as *' The genius of the American people," a phrase 
which public speakers delight to apply on all possible occa- 
sions, it is chiefly manifested in our capacity for developing 
a new country. We hate to see lands uncultivated — mines 
unworked. We praise the man who plants orchards, vine- 
yards, shade-trees, shrubberies, lawns, gardens, hedges, and 
small fruits. And here in California, we perceive, though as 
yet dimly, that in these directions, and not in unparalleled 
wheat-fields, must hereafter lie our greatest jprosperity. 

Horticulture is a very comprehensive term. It has to do 
with trees for use, and for ornament; with the study and cul- 
tivation of every plant that grows; with the work of nursery- 
man, orchardist, farmer; it desires a knowledge of plant- 
diseases, and of their remedies; it is commercial and practical; 
it is also loved for its own sake alone; it is the delight of 
children, and the comfort of many a man's declining years. 

If one of Stanley's African kings were to be taken through 
one of our large cities, from one point to another of interest, 
he would find few things so utterly incomprehensible from 



OP HOBTIOULTURE AND OABDENINO. 101 

his standpoint, as a large commercial nursery, with its green- 
houses, flowering plants, seeds, bulbs, and long rows of care- 
fully labeled trees. "We may believe that he would soon 
begin to understand that brick blocks were for business, and 
costly palaces for shelter and pleasure; that railroads and 
steamboats were for travel; that booming cannon and long 
lines of soldiery meant defence; that smoky manufactories, 
and the clang of hamSiers in countless foundries were an 
essential part of the complex life around him. But he would 
almost certainly fail to comprehend the reason and utility of 
growing thousands of plants of no visible value for food, 
clothing or fuel. It might indeed be possible that the sudden 
sight of a radiant Azalea Van Houttii, in full bloom, or of a 
snowy Espiritu Santo flower, with its -wonderful hidden bird, 
might move him to realize, by a sudden thrill of nature, that 
the love of these things showed greater advancement and 
gave a purer delight to the possessors than did the miles of 
marble palaces and glittering shop-windows. But if ever our 
imaginary visitor from savage Africa grew to appreciate 
beauty of form, of fragrance, of growth, of singularity, of 
simplicity, of color — which abide more or less in each royal 
flower, he would be very far advanced towards the complete 
comprehension of our complex fabric of civilization, and 
might be shown our works of art and precious memorials of 
the past. 

Indeed I know of nothing else, unless it be the modern 
newspaper, which has been so much the creation of the past 
fifty years as has this wonderful horticultural development. 
A few centuries ago ambassadors from countries whose doors 
were locked against jjlain merchants and untitled travelers, 
took gifts of their native plants, and laid them before proud 
and selfish kings, who planted them in royal gardens, where 
proud nobles and worthless courtiers might wander; but the 
middle and lower classes were shut out ruthlessly by walls, 
and uniformed guards. Through war and revolution, pol- 
itical change and industrial growth, the love of gardens, 
trees, and flowers broadened slowly until it was a heritage of 
no single class, but of the whole people. The pleasure 



102 PACIFIC eura-Ij handbook 

gardens of royalty became popular resorts of merchants and 
tradesmen; the love of liorticulture extended from the palace 
to the cottage; men drew nearer to the heart of Nature, and 
that ever faithful breast revived them. 

It has become the peculiar glory of our age that a man's 
home is safer than ever Ijefore: loving it more, he beautifies 
it more, and that beauty re-acts ujDon his mind, giving ]iim 
purity, happiness, simplicity of feeling, and delight in the 
secrets of growth and growing things. Thus the tendency 
of every successive age of peace is towards a fuller develop- 
ment of horticulture, which is, of all human pursuits, endless 
in its hopes and swift in its progress. Where, half a century 
ago, there were but a few botanists exploring the new floras 
of China, South America, and Mexico, there are now educated 
men in every region of the earth whose lives are devoted to 
the discovery and dissemination of new plants; there are 
even nurseries which send out private collectors, for the 
commercial value of a new plant is often considerable. The 
rarer orchids of the tropics, the tuberous-rooted Ijegonias, 
the lilies and foliage plants of Japan, — these, and many 
others, have paid their discoverers and propag.dors large 
sums. 

Now, this process of discovery is to continue until every 
plant is found, classified, tested, and made use of for food, 
shelter, timber, ornament, or medicine. Emerson says a weed 
is only a plant whose virtues are not yet known. Wo may 
hope eventually to find a reason for the existence of every 
plant. Nor will this be a light or simple task. Even iti our 
State the labor of local and foreign botanists has by no means 
exhausted the field, and we may look for many more dis- 
coveries. When we consider the vastness of the new field of 
Central Africa, where whole unrecorded families, and cer- 
tainly new species, maybe expected, and also add the slightly 
explored regions of Asia and South America, we shall begin 
in some degree to appreciate the task of mere discovery. 
There are also continent-like islands, such as Borneo, and 
New Guinea, whose flora lies almost unrevealed. There may 
well be new fruits of richest flavor, plants of undescribed 



OF HORTICUIiTUEE AND GABDENING. 103 

peculiarities, flowers of strange and wonderful hues and 
fragrance, to reward the daring explorer, and the anxious 
nurseryman. Then, when these plants are found and class- 
ified, the work of the microscopist and vegetable physiologist 
begins, the chemist brings his agencies to bear, and perhaps 
a new dye, which saves thousands of dollars — or a new drug, 
which saves thousands of lives — is discovered, and the wild 
flower becomes an ally of civilization. 

Long before this, however, will begin the commercial task 
of scattering newly discovered flowers all over the land. If 
once a sufficient demand is awakened, our rarest and costliest 
plants, as the Camellias, Bhododendrons, &c., will in time be 
brought within the reach of every purse; a new flower found 
at the Antipodes will flash, the next season, in thousands of 
gardens. The growth of the larger nurseries in England and 
the United States is a constant marvel. Sales that less than 
fifty years ago were counted by the hundreds, now are 
reckoned by the ten thousands. Communities where no 
trees were planted then, now support half a dozen nursersies. 
The printing, engraving, and colored plates used by seeds- 
men and plant dealers, the tons of catalogues sent out, the 
use of express and mail facilities — all these mark the growth 
of a vast business as yet comparatively in its infancy. When 
Downing began his " Horticulturist," it had a slow, long 
fight, to win support; now we have several monthly and 
weekly horticultural journals, whilst the religious and 
literary and political press of the land finds it advantageous 
to devote a portion of their space to a weekly department of 
agriculture and horticulture. There is yet much to do, but 
beyond a doubt public interest is awakened in these direc- 
tions. To cultivate flowers is no longer a merely feminine 
pursuit; not to love them is a sad weakness and loss, instead 
of being something manly. We begin to realize, some of us 
at least, that life is short, failures common, success too often 
embittered, public life full of hidden stings; but that to im- 
prove a single acre of naked earth, covering it with bloom 
and foliage, is something tangible, is more enduring than 
marble, is a blessing for children's children. 



lOi PACIFIC BUBAIi HANDBOOK 

Our aim is to make America what England has become by 
her steady, peaceful years of horticultural pursuits, and the 
kindred arts of civilization. We do not propose to have a 
servile imitation of her yew-groves, and hedges of haw- 
thorn; we will use our native plants and trees, and only those 
foreigners which prove themselves adapted to our climate. 
New England shall be New England still — land of trailing 
Arbutus, ferns, water-lilies, lilacs; the opulent Middle States, 
the empire-like West, the sunny, awakening South, our own 
varied slopes of coast range and sierras — each and all shall, 
we hope, bo individual, and therefore artistic. It is the re- 
finement which comes from a national love of flowers, the 
sjmpli^ty which is fostered in rural homes, the comfort and 
quietude of horticultural pursuits — that restless America 
needs, most of all regions under the sun. Art, Science, and 
Literature, shall build up a strong, patient, and benign race, 
if only we sufficiently love the friendly earth, and follow the 
pursuits of the soil, living close to Nature, as out-door loving 
men and women. The little children shall have gardens, to 
them mysterious treasure-houses; the earliest work of our 
schools shall be the study of plant-growth and botany; tired 
people shall, let us hope, learn to ramble, evei'y year, in 
ravine and forest, and find renewed health in the presence of 
the wonderful mountains. 

The poets' Golden Age is lost from sight in the mists of 
Fable, and hid by centuries of war and crime; but the Age of 
Ages, the Song of Songs lies before us, brought nearer by 
each changeful year. The world, which began with a Garden 
of Eden, shall complete the cycle, and come once more to a 
garden as fair as that lost, angel-guarded beauty. Nations, 
it may be, shall yet unite their wealth and energy to reclaim 
the historic deserts of Asia, to re-plant the treeless wastes, to 
revive the dead rivers and re-build the fallen cities of the 
East. 

Here, in California, we too have deserts to plant with 
palms, and naked mountains to plant with cypress and pine. 
There are swamps and malarial regions to be reclaimed with 
Eucalyptus, and red lands to be covered with orchards and 



OF HOETICUIiTUKE AND GABDENING. 105 

vineyards. There is room for many more homes, and indus- 
tries in drying, canning, or preserving fruits. Our most 
fertile valleys must sustain a much greater proportion, and 
in the course of time become beautiful beyond expression, 
■with the rarest fruits, flowers, and shrubs of every land; with 
oranges and magnolias, Japanese foliage plants, South African 
succulents, begonias from the Andes, cacti from Mexico. 
Tea experiments, coffee trials, persimmon investments, and 
similar efforts, are to go on until each locality knows its best 
crop. Wheat-culture will in a measure pass to newer States 
and virgin soil, and the sceptre of grain will leave our hands. 
Our large ranches will be divided up, and we shall enter upon 
a period of unclouded prosperity, founded on diversified in- 
terests, and the highest development of horticulture in all 
its branches. We shall perfect a State system of irrigation, 
reclaim our tule lands, and utilize many of our mountain 
slopes. Strangers will come to visit us, and gladly stay to 
assist our development. 

To this future, then, we look; and southern Europe is m 
many respects our type and example. Whatever Greece, 
Italy, and Spain, were in their noblest days, that we also 
hope to become, except that, as our facilities are greater, so 
our mingling of the beauties of a world may be greater. A 
cosmopolitan people, not narrow nor prejudiced; strong, 
earnest, truthful, original; state-builders, home-lovers, be- 
lievers in education, full of Nature's naturalness: this is that 
end to which we of a ruder, more foolish age must toil, 
setting our faces towards the morning. Our State is not a 
tent of the Saxon race, pitched hastily by this western ocean, 
but a temple rising in the sight of all men. It is not yet 
finished; but the pioneers of '49 hewed monolithic stones, fit 
for a new Temple of the Sun. And here the great of after days 
shall worship, when, ages hence, the story we are now begin- 
ning shall be continued in the deeds of our children; when 
our ancestral oaks, now only just planted, shall become hoary 
monarchs tottering to their fall; when the new walls of our 
young University shall be as gray and venerable as classic 
Oxford. Let us patiently do the work of to-day, so that our 



106 



PACIFIC RUKAIj handbook. 



rude beginnings slaall not be useless, but linked with past 
and future. If only we do our part, these rivers and lakes, 
the beautiful bay of San Francisco, the lonely cliffs, and the 
pallid snow-peaks, shall one and all become classic ground. 
It is man's labor, and the heroic deeds of men, which put a 
new and more divine seal to Nature's fairest scenes. Mount 
Shasta, in its translucent majesty, shall out-rival Mont Blanc; 
our Sierras shall awaken more noble poems than Alps or 
Appenines. So these western shores shall become the lands 
of cultured groves and dreaming gardens and horticultural 
triumphs, liaked closely with Art, Literature, and the out- 
door pursuits of a powerful, yet refined race. 



" O fair young land, the proudest far 

Of which the western world can boast; 
Whose guardian planet, evening's silver star. 
Illumes her golden coast. " 



Chapter XV. 

HOMES, AND HOME LIFE. 

The Central Thought of this Book. — For the Sake 
of our Children we should have Beautiful 
Homes. — The Barrenness of too many Farm- 
houses. — The First Necessity of a Home. — 
Woman's Work in the Garden. — Books: their 
Value. — ^How to Buy Books. — Books of Refer- 
ence. — Books for a Family Library. — News- 
papers. — Pictures, and Picture Frames. — The 
Expense of Home Adornment Considered. — A 
Plea in its Behalf. 



WF there be in this unpretentious volume, which I have 
(95) written during the intervals of farm-work, any connect- 
ing link which runs from chapter to chapter, any central 
thought found everywhere as a bond of union, any strong 
motive which gives these rambling essays the effect and 
meaning of a homogeneous whole, it can be none other than 
this — to honor the home and its surroundings, and to teach 
people how to improve them. These rural essays are succes- 
sive sermons on the pleasures inherent in tree-shelter, flower- 
fragrance, vines, hedges, masses of color, Alpine gardens, 
and the other arts which pertain to the adornment of home. 
No subject should be nearer than this to the hearts of the 
people; the homes we make decide in a large measure the 
destinies of our children; if we crown them with love, and 
bower them in beauty, the next generation will be manly, 
womanly, pure, and healthful. The hopes, fears, and labors 



108 PACEPIO RURAL HANDBOOK 

of each generation are largely bound up in the next. Parents 
worthy of the name will plan, toil, save every dollar, and 
deny themselves needed comforts, for the sake of their 
children's future advamrement. 

But parents commit a sad and almost remediless error when 
they, as so often, bring up their children in bookless, picture- 
less homes A forlorn looking house, with dusty grain-fielda 
sweeping to the very door, no orchard or garden anywhere, 
no picturesque porches or balconies, is not apt to be very 
dear to the memories of after years. It does not take much 
money to brighten home, but it does take patience and fore- 
thought. A few books of permanent value — the master- 
pieces of English literature; a few engravings of pure outliuQ 
and refined beauty which shall daily refine the children's 
faces; a few papers of good morals and practical ability; a 
bit of color here, a home-made bracket there, an air of neat- 
ness everywhere — are these costly requirements ? In this age 
of toil, ambition, and wealth-getting, we cannot too strongly 
emphazise the fact that it is not sufiicient for a man to feed, 
clothe, and technically educate his family. He must in some 
way have links to bind their hearts to the paternal acres, and 
to the family calling; gardens, shrubberies, clinging vines, 
pictures, low voices of loving parents — these shall far out- 
bid the attractions of saloons, billiard-tables, races, and 
licentiousness. Your sons, under home influences, shall 
become truth-loving, sinewy men; your daughters shall bo 
fair and stately women; unsullied names shall be theirs, and 
lives of sweetness and rare simplicity. 

Only those who have travelled over the length and breadth 
of California know how far from this ideal picture is the 
average farm-house. It is true we have often been happily 
surprised at the refinement, and knowledge of Art and Liter- 
ature, manifested by dwellers in lonely mining cabins above 
the roaring Trinity, or on the upper Sacramento. Still, in num- 
berless instances, we have seen where Nature had done all she 
Could for the surroundings, and careless men had done abso- 
lutely nothing. It is within the power of eyery man to brighten 
his home, no matter how poor or rude are the surroundings. 



OF HOBTICULTUKE AND GARDENING. 109 

The first necessity, whether a house is perched on some 
lonely peak, or hid in a deep canyon, or set on a wide, tree- 
less, dusty plain, is to fence in a little space around it, so 
that the cattle-yard shall not extend quite to the door-step. 
In too many cases owners of large ranches will have cattle, 
sheep, and hogs lying at the very door. This is deferjded as 
a convenience, whereas it is the costliest of nuisances. A 
little orchard, a vegetable garden, a few hardy shrubs, a rose 
climbing over a porch, some grape-vines, a patch of straw- 
berries — all solid and tangible comforts, might so easily bo 
secured, if only the little fence were built. Even in localities 
called barren, much may be done by continually stirring the 
surface. We have seen vegetables of the finest quality, which 
were grown on uplands, without irrigation. Fruit trees, well 
l^lanted and mulched, need little further care. And as for 
flowers, just give the ladies of the family a dollar or so to 
send for flower-seeds, and they will inevitably have a garden. 
If women ever do get the upper hand in this world, I fancy 
it will be a good time for flower-planting, and the chances 
are that they will quite usurp the occupations of florist 
and seedsman. In these days our girls mostly think they 
must, in order to remain respectable, teach school, or teach, 
music, or write poetry, or read proof, or get a place in the 
Mint, or sell silks, or set type; but we wish they could be- 
lieve that gardening, and flower-growing, fruit-gathering, 
and green-house work, were quite as fitting, more healthful, 
and pleasanter. Shall ever our autumnal vintages be gath- 
ered, not by alien hands, but by our own cheerful youths and 
laughing maidens ? For women, as for men, the out-door 
life is a constant blessing; this climate of ours, so benignant 
in its gifts, would make us new children of the summer; our 
hills are the hills of Palestine, our valleys are the vales of 
Thessaly. 

If a man would have his home-life profitable he must 
have some books. A well selected small library is a safe- 
guard against evil, and a constant refining influence; its 
practical value in showing how to economize or make money, 
ia undoubted; and no other single element so enforces and 



110 PAOiriC KUEAIi HANDBOOK '^ 

justifies parental teachings. In selecting books for a library, 
the books sold by travelling agents should always be viewed 
with caution. They are, as a rule, expensive works, written 
by second-class men, large print, poor paper, wide margins, 
and in all respects far below the books which can be obtained 
at the same price from a reliable book-store. Wo do not 
question that some well written books, and some of rare 
value, have occasionally been published on the subscription 
plan; but the exceptions prove the rule. It is well, there- 
fore, to buy subscription books with great caution; no re- 
spectable working library can be made up of them alone; nor 
one of them, unless it be Stanley's *' Across the Dark Con- 
tinent," has ever reached the dignity of a classic. The best 
way to procure books is to write to any book-seller or pub- 
lisher in San Francisco, or any other large city, enclosing a 
stamp, and asking for a catalogue of books. When received, 
make your selection, and the books will be sent by mail, or 
0. O. D. Persons spending twenty-five or fifty dollars at a 
time will get quite a desirable discount from any reliable 
firm. 

Let us see what we most require. The model library 
must have some weight; it must be an authority in the home. 
We must not have dull books, written by men who did not 
die soon enough, nor works of mock-sentimentalists, nor con- 
troversial books, nor systems of theology; but those works, 
of a practical order, in which the latest and best information 
is to be found. Briefly, the first needs of a library are a 
Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, a CycloiDsedia, either 
Johnson's or Appleton's, and a large Atlas. These are some- 
what expensive, but they may be purchased by monthly ia- 
stallments, aud are of themselves a library, whilst no assem- 
blage of books without them is entitled to that name. Next, 
there might well be an illustrated work on botany, one on 
geology, some of the Science primers, Tyndall's " Forms of 
Water," Faraday's " Chemistry of a Candle," " Orton's 
Zoology," *' Newcomb's Astronomy," and similar books. 

This model library, however, is not only to be a reference 
and authority, but also a sweet, refining influence. It must 



OF HOBTICULTXmE AND GAEDENINO 111 

contain what a recent writer calls * * the might and mirth of 
literature." It must hold the highest thoughts of men, and 
their utmost expression. If to those children whose horizons 
are as yet narrow, and whose futures are as yet problematic, 
some of that broader intellectual light which is the age's 
dower can be given — it may be that the revelation will last, 
and brighten their lives, making them better wives and hus- 
bands, better women and men. Herein is the true joy and 
worth of books; that they speak, deny, rejoice, awaken, sym- 
pathize with our moods, change the currents of lives — are 
engines mightiest of all that men have contrived. This library 
of ours must be heedfuUy chosen, with books for every age. 
For the youngest of the family there are the " Seven little 
Sisters," the Prudy books, the Ainslee stories, The Bodleys 
on Wheels, the bound volumes of the Nursery, and, for 
young and old alike, the volumes of St. Nicholas. The older 
boys and girls may have Paul and Virginia, Undine, The 
Ancient Mariner, Plutarch's Lives, Tom Brown at Rugby, 
Little Women, Hale's " Ten Times One is Ten," and Kings- 
ley's " Westward Ho," the noblest of his works. History is 
of great importance. Green's " Shorter History of the Eng- 
lish People, is the best family history for the period of which 
it treats. The small volumes of the *' Epochs of History " 
series may be depended upon. Gibbon, Macaulay, Prescott's 
Mexico and Peru, Motley's ** Eise of the Dutch Eepublic," 
Buckle's History of Civilization, and Freeman's Norman 
Conquest, are works of fascinating interest. American his- 
tory is told in the pages of Bancroft, Parkman, Draper, and 
Greeley. Among standard and collected works it is well to at 
first select only the best examples of each author's style. 
Bacon's Essays, Dickens' David Copperfield, Irving's Knick- 
erbocker, a volume of Emerson's, of Hawthorne's, of Mac- 
donald's, of De Quincey's, Shakespeare, Tennyson, Long- 
fellow, Whittier, — in some such way the choice should be 
made. A library thus chosen, and faithfully used as a part 
of the home-life of every farmer, will educate his children to 
be men and women full of power, dignity, freedom and ex- 
pression, conversant with the leading events of history. 



112 PAOIPIO RUBAIi HANDBOOK. 

lovers of pure literature, and, above all, honest, independent 
thinkers. 

The newspapers and monthlies which come into the family- 
circle are of almost as much im^Dortance as the books in the 
library. No man is in any wise excusable for a lack of knowl- 
edge of the events and thoughts of the living present. No 
person who does not read the daily newspaper is fit for self- 
government. A school-teacher, going into a new district, can, 
within three hours, pick out the children whose parents read 
newspai^ers, and read them in the family. Such children are 
brighter, less liable to be puzzled, have more general inform- 
ation, and study better than those from homes where no 
dailies or weeklies are taken. It is true, however, that news- 
papers are only a supplement of hard study. The knowledge 
they give is necessarily fragmentary. The daily paper must 
be read with dictionary, atlas, and cyclopaedia, close at hand. 
I am persuaded that the average farmer can afford to take one 
daily paper, his local weekly, a weekly or monthly devoted to 
agriculture and horticulture, and one good literary monthly, 
like Scribner's or Harper's — these four, at least; and at the 
end of each year, his monthly shonld be neatly bound and 
put in his library. 

Pictures enliven the rudest cabin, and cheer the lowliest 
home. If only every child could live, from the days of in- 
fancy, in the presence of noble pictures! Pictures of very 
great educational value can be procured at a slight expense 
— the mere pictures, without frames, I mean. There are 
engravings, " Night," and *' Morning," " The Huguenot 
Lovers," faces of Elaine and Evangeline landscapes, engraved 
from the greatest of artists, animals of Landseer and Eosa 
Bonheur. There are chromes of Prang's, and there are cheap 
chromes, of which the less said the better. A good engraving 
is infinitely the best. Then, as regards the framing, let the 
boys have a good bracket-saw, and some cheap moulding; let 
them try rustic frames, and carved ones; it will not be long 
before every picture is framed with a skill which is nearly 
professional. 



OP HOKTICULTUEB AND GAKDENING. 113 

Dried Flowers, and Grasses, for 
Decoration. 

But we may decorate our parlors, sitting-rooms, and halls, 
"with Nature's own gifts. Books we must have, and pictures 
we must have; there are also immoktelles and gkasses for 
house-decokation; and although it will make this chapter 
rather long, still I have been recently asked, by many per- 
uons, for some paragraphs on this subject. 

Although dried flowers and grasses are so useful as orna- 
ments on our mantel-pieces, brackets, and centre-tables, they 
are as yet chiefly imported from the East and from Europe. 
Now there is every reason in favor of, and none against, our 
own growth of these things. It is well known that our plumes 
of pampas grass are shipped to fhe Eastern States by the 
thousands, and quite control the market. I am convinced 
that we can grow much finer immortelles, also, and our native 
grasses, used in conjunction with imported kinds, will give 
us an unsurpassed variety. 

The most popular foreign flowers and grasses are dyed, 
and bring high prices. Now, we ought to grow all these in 
California. Our boys and girls ought to have little gardens, 
and build up some trade in this direction. It will be a long 
time before we can equal the French in preparing them; but 
doubtless there are many men in San Francisco who under- 
stand how to dye them. The culture and home-treatment are 
what I would now discuss. 

The Helichrysum ranks high among the immortelles. It 
is of easy growth, showy in the garden, blooms all summer 
and autumn, and has large, bright, double flowers. Tin 
seeds of ten varieties of Helichrysum may be purchased for 
seventy-five cents, or a paper of mixed seeds for ten cents. 
Sow in the open ground, or in a box, and transplant, one foot 
apart each way. Gather the flowers before they are quite 
open, and use some small buds. The Acroclinium is a delicate 
little everlasting, with pink and white flowers. Ammobium 
has small, white flowers. The Globe Amaranth (Gomphrena) 
is of harder culture than the others named, but should be in 



114 PACIFIO RURAIi HANDBOOK 

every collection. Helipterum Sanfordi is highly recom- 
mended, but has not been much of a success with us. Kho- 
danthe, Waitzia, Xeranthemum, and others, add to the winter 
bouquet; and some flowers will be found to retain their color 
when dried. 

The rule for drying immortelles is to dry them in the 
shade— and so hung and tied that they will dry reasonably 
straight. Then they may be packed away in a large box or 
trunk, until wanted for floral decoration, mottoes, &c. Single 
blossoms of the larger everlastings may be woven through 
evergi'een decorations with good effect. 

Let us not think that here, in California, we do not need 
them. Beautiful in themselves, and interesting from their 
permanence, they also bring many of us memories of Eastern 
homes, of merry winters, and old-fashioned parlors, grandly 
decorated. Whether we may or may not find that it pays to 
grow immortelles, let us fill our homes with them, for the 
color they give. Fresh and living flowers shall always be 
dearest, but shall we not treasure these winter-flowers also, 
and find new uses for them? In the smallest garden, let 
them have a corner; it will not be without value. 

The ornamental grasses may next claim our attention. 
They may h6 sown in small beds, early in the season, and 
given no further attention, except an occasional watering, and 
some thinning out, if needed. Out of the long lists, which 
might be given, we select those we have seen tried here, and 
know to be desirable : Agrostis Nebulosa; Avena Sterilis (an- 
imated oats) ; Briza Maxima (shaking grass) ; Hordeum Juba- 
tum ; Setaria Macrocheta — these are annuals. Some of the best 
perennial grasses are Gynerium Latifolia (pampas grass) ; 
Stipa Pennata (feather grass) ; Bromus Brizaeformis; and 
Erianthus Ravennse. Pampas plumes are to be bleachecl iu 
the sun, to obtain that silvery whiteness so much admired. 
Cut them when just out of the sheaths. 

But although dried flowers are cheap, books and pictures 
cost money; and if a further suggestion is made of one of 
Eogers' statuettes, to stand in the parlor, perhaps there will 



OF HOBTICULTUBB AND GABDENINa. 115 

be a mnrinnr of disapproval. Well, then, let us consider. 
It will be admitted that more knowledge is required to suc- 
ceed in life now, than heretofore. This tendency will doubt- 
less increase. Our children m*st know more than we do, or 
they cannot maintain their places in the same social circles. 
The public school can never entirely take the place of home 
instruction. An expense which early awakens the intellect, 
and strengthens it for after usefulness, cannot be termed use- 
less. Every cent which aids in adorning home, or purchases 
books, or hangs pictures on the walls, is to be considered a 
good investment, with first-class collateral securities. 

A child once well educated is a profitable investment for 
his family and for the State, even from a material sense only. 
He may revolutionize the world of science with a discovery 
the germs of which trace back to a book of his childhood. 
He may paint pictures which shall hereafter be heirlooms 
in noble families; or write poems of such rare force and 
delicate finish and spiritual insight, that the hearts of toil- 
ing people shall be glad because of his gift; he may becotne 
one of those leaders whose silence is the hope of a land, 
whose speech is its salvation whose right arm guides to 
victory, not only, or merely, on battle-fields, but where 
great moral principles contend, and the blind passions of the 
masses are to be controlled. Men of these types are hard 
to find, although they are the desire of every age. For 
lack of home-training and home-education the world is too 
often compelled to take narrow, one-sided, selfish leaders, 
instead of strong, gentle, and patient heroes. 

A child who is foolishly trained, or poorly educated, or 
lelt to " grow up " under countless evil influences, in an un- 
refined, hopeless sort of a home, affords but sorry material for 
a citizen. In endless ways of ignorance and fraud he becomes 
an expense to the State, a bar to hopeful human progress. 
Under our system of government uneducated citizens are 
expensive luxuries which need the sort of watching given to 
a powder magazine. Let us have faith in the work of the 
public schools, but let us never forget that the privacy and 
gentle lessons of home are the crowning result of men's work 



116 PACnto kukaij handbook. 

on this planet, and that the purest influences and noblest 
citizens must come from the quietest homes. 

Whoever desires to have the aflfection of his children, and 
memories reaching pleasantly from year to year, must be sure 
that his home is not merely a costly shelter, but is instead a 
living embodied spirit of comfort, i^eace, patience, restful- 
ness, freedom, and affection. If you make your homes all 
they should be your children rise up and call you blessed. 
Your sons are counselors in the gates, your daughters are 
prudent and virtuous. Broad acres, and a heavy banking 
account are desirable; but do not let too eager pursuit of 
wealth overshadow the lives of your children, or deprive 
them of books, pictures, flowers, and school x^riviliges. 




TABLES OF DESIRABLE PLANTS. 



TABLE I. 
DESIEABLE DECIDUOUS SHRUBS, 

(In most cases rooting from eitttings taken in early winter.) 



Name. 



Description. 



Treatment, &c. 



Almond, double white, 

and double pink. 
Althea, or Rose of Sharon 



Achania Malvavisca. 



Abutilon, or China Bell- 
flower. 



Aloysia Citrodora, or Le- 
mon Verbena. 
Cestrum Aurantiacum . . . 

Crape Myrtle (La^erstroe- 
meria Indica). 



Clerodendron Fragrans, 
and Speciosa. 

Calycanthus Florida, or 
Spice Wood. 



Corn us Alternifolia. 



Deutzia Scabra, and D. 
Crenata. 

Hydrangea Hortensis,and 
other varieties. 



Habrothamnus Elegans. 
Lantanas 



Lilac . 



Showy flowers, not long in 
bloom. 

Many colors ; double white 
is the best ; constant 
summer bloomer. 

Scarlet, bell-shaped flowers; 
brilliant bedder. 

Boule de Neige, Thomp- 
son i, Vexillarium Var., 
and Darwini, are the 
best. 

Well known, but always 
desirable. 

Spikes of yellow flowers ; 
very ornamental. 

Masses of bloom, all sum- 
mer, and universally 'ad- 
mired ; valuable on the 
lawn. 

Large purplish clusters of 
striking appearance. 

Large, double fragrant, 
dull red flowers. We 
have a native species of 
stronger growth. 

Species of dogwood ; sel- 
dom seen ; desirable. 

White-frina:ed flowers ; sin- 
gle or double ; neat 
growth. 

The pure white, Stellata, 
and the climbing, are the 
most desirable. Immense 
heads of bloom ; well 
known. 

Tubular red flowers, in 
drooping clusters ; blooms 
in winter and spring. 

Coarse, but showy shrubs, 
with verbena-like flowers. 

Indispensable for spring 
blooming ; the white 
blossoms shyly. 



Bud on common peach or 

almond. 
Cuttings, in autumn, or 

grafts on seedling stock. 

Needs close trimming ; 
grow from cuttings or 
seed. 

Trim, and keep in good 
growth ; liable to scale- 
bug, or coccus. 

Cuttings need to be kept 
wet all summer. 

Needs close trimming, to 
keep in shape. 

Should have a warm, shelt- 
ered location. 



Does well with ordinary 
treatment. 

Naturally grows in moist 
places ; propagates by 
suckers and root-cuttinga 

Grown from seeds. 

Easy culture, and rapidly 
propagated from cuttings 

As the family name de- 
notes, lovers of water ; 
grows readily from the 
new wood. 

A large grower ; needs close 
trimming; easy of propa- 
gation. 

Killed by severe frosts; 
liable to grow from seed, 
and become a weed here. 

Keep the head open, and 
cut off the suckers. 



118 



PAOiriO EUBAL HANDBOOK 



TABLE I. 
DESIRABLE DECIDUOUS SHRUBS— (Continued.) 



Name. 



Pyrus Japonica, or Japan 
quince. 

Rhus Cotinus, or Smoke 
Tree. 

Ribeg Sanguinea (flower- 
ing currant). 

Syringa, or Mock or-^ 

ange. 
Spirea, or Bridal Wreath }■ 
Viburnum Opulus, or J 

Snowball. / 

Tamarix Gallica 



Wigelia. 



Description. 



Blooms in winter ; colors, 
pink, white, and scarlet. 

A large shrub, with peculi- 
arly graceful and airy 
flowers. 

This, and our native, rose- 
colored species, are very 
desirable. 

These three well known 
shrubs should be in every 
collection, however small 
Spirea Prunifolia is one 
o£ the best. 

A fine-leaved shrub, with 
rose-colored, spring flow- 
ers. 

Flowers white, and of vari- 
ous shades of pink ; com- 
pact growth and luxuriant 
bloom. 



Treatment, &c. 



Grow from suckers, or root 

cuttings. 
Grows well on rocky and 

arid points. 

Enjoys a cool and shady lo- 
cation. 

Treatment easy ; prune in 
the Fall ; cut oflf suckers; 
propagate from hard- 
wood cuttings. 

Can be trained over a gate- 
way. 

Any good soil ; healthy, 
and easy of culture. 



TABLE II. 
DESIRABLE EVERGREEN SHRUBS. 



Name. 



Aucuba Japonica, or 
"Gold Dust Tree." 

Buddleya Lindeyana 

Buxus Variegata, or 
" Tree Box." 

Cerasus lUicifolium, or 
" Wild cherry." 



Camellia Japonica 



Daphne Odorata 



Diosma Alba, or " Breath 
of Heaven." 

Escallonia, Alba and Ru- 
bra. 



Description. 



Leaves of great substance, 
spotted with yellow. 

Handsome blue flowers 

The fine leaves and rich 
color of this well known 
tree render it desirable. 

This is a native shrub, sim- 
ilar to the holly. 

Although in great variety 
of color, the white is uni- 
versally preferred. 

Fragrant, white, star-like 
blossoms. 

A charming little shrub, of 
slow growth, and .always 
m bloom. 

Hardy little shrub of up- 
right growth, and long 
in bloom. 



Treatment, &c. 



Liable to scale-bug ; grown 

from new wood. 
Of easy culture. 
A shady and somewhat 

moist place is best. 

Cannot be easily transplant- 
ed ; grows from seeds ; 
hedge plant. 

Too much sun scorches the 

leaves ; avoid too much 

water. 
A shady, sheltered place on 

the lawn. 
Needs water ; diflScu't to 

propagate from cuttings. 

Succeeds well anywhere. 



OF HOBTICUIiTURB AND aARDBNING 



119 



TABLE II. 
DESIRABLE EVERGREEN SHRUBS.— (Continued.) 



Name. 


Description. 


Treatment, &c. 


Gardenia Florida, or Cape 


Fragrant white flowers, and 


Warm and sheltered loca- 


Jasmine. 




of handsome growth. 


tion. 


Guava, apple and straw- 


Bearing delicious fruit in 


Will not endure frost. 


berry varieties. 




winter. 




Holly, Ilex Crenata.. . 




The classic red-berried Eng- 


Use as a single specimen 






lish holly. 


on the lawn. 


Kalmia Latifolia, 


or 


A shrub of the AUeghanies, 


Prefers a shady place, and 


*' Calico Bush." 




with large rose-colored 
flowers. 


may be grown from seeds 


Kennedya alba 


. . . 


Racemes of white and frag- 


Perfectly adapted to ©ur 






rant flowers. 


gardens. 


[^aurestinus 


... 


Our best winter blooming 


Valuable for an ornamental 






shrub. 


hedge. 


Liofnstrum Japonica, 


or 


White clusters ; siimmer 


Also used for hedges; grown 


'♦ Japan privet." 




bloomer. 


from cuttings. 


yiahonia JaponiiJa, 


or 


Holly-like leaves and ra- 


Choice, as a single speci" 


Ash-berry. 




cemes -of yellow flowers. 


men ; growai from seeds- 


Myrtus Communis . . . 




Spicy leaves; small flowers; 
bright berries. 


Liable to scale-bug. 








Oleander 




One of our most popular 
shrubs. 


Much affected by the scale- 






bug; cuttings root slowly 


Polyg^ala Dalmaisin.. . 




A nearlyperpetual bloomer; 


Succeeds everywhere ; of 






purple flowers. 


slow growth. 


Pomegranate, dwarf. 


There is a white, besides 


An admirable lawn plant ; 


double. 




the well known scarlet. 


keep trimmed well. 


Veronica 




Winter bloomers; spikes of 


Of easy culture ; grown 






purple, white, or rose 


from seeds, layers, or cut- 






colored flowers. 


tings. 


Yuccas 




A family of shrubby plants; 


They may be used on rock- 






natives of hot and dry 


work, or lawns ; grown 






regions. 


from seed. 



TABLE III. 
CLIMBING PLANTS OF VALUE. 



Name. 



Description. 



Treatment, &c. 



A.kebia Quinata. 



An evergreen vine of great 
beauty, delicate leaves, 
good habit, and unique 
flowers appearing in 
spring, and fragrant ; one 
of the best vines in the 
whole list. 



It rarely forms seed, and is 
difficult to propagate ; 
plants must be bought. 



120 



PAOIPIO RUKAL HANDBOOK 



. TABLE III. 
CLIMBING PLANTS OF VALUE.- (Continued.) 



Name. 



Ampelopsis Virginica, or 
Virginia Creeper. 



Abutilon Vexillarium. 



Aristolochia Sipho, and 
other varieties (Dutch- 
man's pipe). 

Bignonia Radicans, and 
Grandiflora (Scarlet 
Trumpet Creeper). B. 
Tweediana has golden 
yellow flowers. 



Clematis (Virgin's Bower) 



Clianthus Puniceus, or 
" Parrot's-bill Flower." 



Cobea Scandens. 



Cissus Quinquefolia, 
Everlasting Pea 

Hardenbergia 

Honeysuckle 

Hedera, or Ivy 



Description. 



A deciduous vine, with 
brilliantly colored aut- 
umnal foliages ; clings 
with curious disks at the 
ends of the tendrils ; of 
very rapid growth. 

Small, fluted, malvaceous 
flowers ; may be trained 
against a fence, or trellis, 
or trimmed closely, to 
form a bush. 

Brown - colored flowers, 
bent like a tobacco pipe ; 
large, heart shaped leaves 
grows rapidly. 

This deciduous vine, a na- 
tive of our southern 
States, ranks with the 
Wisteria for striking ef- 
fects. No vine is better 
suited to our climate. 

The new hybrid varieties 
of this old flower are of 
value for rock-work and 
bedding. 

This is a shrubby climber, 
unsurpassed for color. 



Large purple, bell-shaped 
flower; coarse, but showy; 
marvelously rapid grower, 
and will soon cover un- 
sightly objects. 

This is a fine and hardy 
vine, with variegated 
leaves. 

A perennial pea, with many 
admirable points ; the 
flowers are white, pink, 
or crimson. 

A shrub of climbing habit ; 
pea shaped flowers of 
white, and other colors. 

The coral, the evergreen 
fragrant, and the golden- 
leaved, are the best. 

Tliose who study ivy leaves 
will find an extensive va- 
riety of both plain and 
colored. The choice ivies 
should be planted more 
often. 



Treatment, &c. 



Of the easiest culture ; 
grown from seeds, or 
layered, or from cuttings 



Always grown from cut- 
tings. 



Propagated from seeds and 
layers ; there are several 
Aristolochias natives of 
the Pacific slope. 

Broken cliffs of rock, old 
trees or^ buildings, may 
be covered ; it clings by 
air-roots at the joints ; 
we have seen it staked, 
and trimmed to a bush- 
like head. 

The best kinds are grafted 
on seedlings, or on our 
wild species. 

A native of Australia ; 
grown from seeds, and, 
in rare cases, from cut- 
tings. 

Seeds, planted edgewise, 
in light, warm soil ; soft- 
wood cuttings rooted in 
sand at any season. 

Cuttings, with bottom heat 



Cut back to the ground, 
after blooming; grow it 
from seeds, or divisions 
of the roots. 

In this climate, hardy ; 
grown chiefly from seeds. 

Of the easiest culture ; 
grown readily from cut- 
tings. 

Parts of our State are very 
trying to ivy ; a cool and 
northern locality is pref- 
erable ; seeds ; cuttings ; 
layers. 



OF HOETICULTUEE AND GARDENING. 



121 



TABLE III. 
CLIMBING PLANTS OF VALUE.— (Continued.) 



Name. 



Jasmine —White, Yellow, 
and Catalonian, or 
Grandiflorum. 



Maurandya Barclayana . 



Passiflora Coerulea ; P. 
Alata ; P. Edulis. 



Plumbago Capensis (light 
blue); Larpentse (dark 
blue), and Alba (white) 

Physianthus Alba 



Rhyncospermum Jas- 
minoides. 

Smilax 



Description. 



Treatment, &c. 



Senecio Macroglossis 
(dark leaved German 
Ivy). 

Solanum Jasminoides ; 
also S. Variegata. 



Thunbergia Alata., 



Tecoma Jasminoides 
(Trumpet Flower). 



Vinca (Periwinkle). 



Wisteria Sinensis ; blue, 
rose-colored, and white 



The jasmines are una- 
proachable for beautjs 
when trained to a pillar 
and allowed to trail over. 
The Catalonian jasmine 
is much the largest, and 
blooms in winter. 

A delicate leaved vine, with 
purple, trumpet-like flow- 
ers ; rajiid growth ; heal- 
thy ; a constant bloomer; 
also rose - colored, and 
white. 

.Well grown evergreen vines 
with gorgeous purple or 
scarlet flowers. P. edulis 
has fruit of good quality. 

The plumbago is a shrubby 
vine of great value for 
walls, arbors, and pillars. 

Fragrant clusters of flowers 
curious large seed pods, 
full of sil very down ; an 
evergreen vine. 

Fragrant and white flowers. 

A delicate vine, unsur- 
passed for small trellises; 
used for decoration. 

An evergreen vine of strong 
growth ; dark, lustrous 
leaves ; much better than 
the old sort. 

Evergreen vines of rapid 
growth, and great bloom- 
ers ; clusters of blue-col- 
ored, potato-like flowers . 

The sulphur-yellow and 
dark center of this flower 
are unique. 

An evergreen vine always 
much admired ; good 
habit, and beautiful flow- 
ers. 

Small vine; blue and white; 
liable to spread. 

This deciduous vine is of 
rapid growth, soon cover- 
ing a porch or wall ; bril- 
liant racemes of pea- 
shaped flowers. 



Jasmines, if kept too warm 
and close, are apt to get 
scale ; use a handful of 
free potash, stirred in a 
quart of whale-oil soap ; 
grown from cuttings. 

Prefers a warm and sunny 
place ; grown best from 
cuttings of new wood. 



They prefer a suimy loca- 
tion, and are easily grown 
from cuttings. 

It grows readily from cut- 
tings taken in fall. 

This vine, in many respects 
desirable, will make a, 
thick cover for arbor, &c. ; 
it is attacked by the yel- 
low aphis. 

A hardy vine. 

If planted in the open 
ground, prefers a some- 
what shady location ; 
grows from seeds. 

Used to cover mounds, or 
on a fence or trellis ; 
grown from cuttings. 

Fasten to a wall ; contrast 
with some bright color, 
as a clump of gladioli ; 
grow from cuttings. 

Does well in the summer- 
garden, on a trellis, or 
pegged down ; increased 
from seeds. 

Should be in a sheltered 
place. 



Use on rock-work, old 
stumps, &c.; grows well 
in the shade. 

Needs a good support, and 
fastening ; when once es- 
tablished, will need heavy 
pruning ; increased by 
cuttings ; also by seeds. 



122 



PACIFIC EUEAL HANDBOOK. 



TABLE IV. 
AQUATIC PLANTS. 



Name. 
Alocasia Esculenta 

Arundo Donax 

Brasenia Peltata (Water- 
shield). 

Bambusa Japonica 



Description. 



Treatment, &c. 



Calla Ethiopica, . 



Calla Palustris (Marsh 
Calla). 

C3T)erus Alternifolios. . . . 



Lysimachia (Moneywort) 

Myosotis Palustris (Blue 
Forget-me-not). 

Mimulus, in variety 



Nymphaea Flava. 



Nymphsea Odorata. 



Paencratium Coronarium 

Reineckea Camea 

Saxifraga Peltata 

Trapa Bicomis, or " Bean 
of Pythagoras," 



Very large, shield - like 
leaves ; tropical appear- 
ance. 

A variegated grass of tall 
growth. 

An aquatic plant of the 
Eastern States. 

Of these there are many 
varieties, both dwarf and 
tall ; wide, and narrow- 
leaved, dark green, light 
green, and variegated 
colors ; the black stem- 
med variety is very strik- 
ing. 

The favorite white Calla 

lily. 
White and green flowers. . . 



A grass-like plant, with 
stems crowned by whorls 
of horizontal leaves. 

A small plant for aquar- 
iums, &c. ; yellow flowers 

Another aquarium plant ; 
spikes of delicate, starry 
flowers. 

The small hybrid Mimulus, 
also the tall growing wild 
scarlet, and our native 
yellow species, are indis- 
pensable. 

This is the yellow water 
lily of Florida, figured by 
Audbon, and re-discov- 
ered by Mrs. Treat, in 
1876. 

The white water-lily; large, 
fragrant flowers; orbic- 
ular leaves, cleft from 
the base. 

White flowering lily-like 
bulb; native of the south; 
blooms from July to Nov- 
ember. 

A small plant with narrow 
leaves and purple flowers 

Shield-like leaves ; hairy 
stem. 

A water-plant, bearing a 
curious, black, horned 
seed, used for food by 
the people of China and 
India. 



Bulboas-rooted ; will also 
grow in garden soil. 

Increased by root divisions 

Desirable for p*nds. 

By using in clumps, fine 
effects are obtained ; in- 
creased by root division 



Will flourish in garden 
soil, if not too dry. 

Related to the Papyrus of 
the nile ; often beauti- 
fully variegated. 

Also used for baskets or 
vases ; of easy culture. 

An allied species grows in 
this State, 

Prefers shade ; grown from 
seed, or new wood cut- 
tings. 

Seed scattered in moist 
places grows readily ; th« 
wild may be moved in 
spring. 

Probably the beat water 
lily for tubs or aquaria ; 
tuberous roots. 



The root should be buried 
in the mud and covered 
with at least a foot of 
water. 

Should be planted by the 
side o( a stream or lake. 



Algo good for baskets. 

For small aquaria. 

Grown from the seeds, or 
nuts, and peculiar in 
bloom and growth. 



R. J. TRUMBULL & CO., 



Growers, Importers, Wholesale and Retail Dealers in 



Vegetable, Flower, Field and Tree 








5 



Floivering Plants and Bulbs, Fruit and Ornamental 
Trees, Etc. Fancy Wire Designs, Garden 
Trellises, Syringes y and Gar- 
den Hardware. 

Comprising- the Most Complete Stock ever OfiPered 
on the Pacific Coast. 



PRICES UNUSUALLY LOW. 



Nursery, Corner H and Center Streets, San Rafael. 

Catalogues on application. 

R. J. TRUMBULL & CO., 
419 & 421 Sansome St., San Francisco. 



Geo. F. Silvester, 



Importer, Wholesale and Retail Dealer in 





Fruil and Evergreen Trees, Plants. Etc. 



ALFALFA GRASS AND CLOVER SEEOS 



In Large Quantities, and offered in Lots to suit Pdbchasebs. 




Weeding Hook. Pruning Sheaes. 

Best approved Patterns of 

Pruning" Shears, Budding- and Pruning Knives, 

Hedge Shears, Weeding Hooks, and Every 

Variety of Garden Implement. 

Oil Soai^ for Destroying Insects; Brass Syringes and 
Garden Pumps; Superior Gopher Traps. 

^^ Send for Catalogue. 



SEED WAREHOUSE: 

315 and 317 Washington St., SAN FRANCISCO. 



BULBS. S EEDS. TREES. 

SEVIN VINCENT & CO., 

WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALERS AKD 

C3H=L O T;^ DES H. S» OI" SI 3B3 :aE3 3D J5 . 

We call atteufcion of farmers and country merchants to oiu unusually low prices. All 
seeds warranted fresh, pure and reliable. S^ Trade price list on application. 

*»* We issue the most complete guide to the Vegetable and Flower Garden ever issued 
upon this Coast. It is handsomely illustrated, and contains full descriptions of Vege- 
tables, Flowers, Grasses, Trees, etc., with full mstructions as to their culture, mailed 
free on application. 

GOT Siinsome Street, SAN FRANCISCO. 

Importer and Dealer in all Kinds of 
Vegetable, A P P 11 fl P^A^'L'S 

Flower, \ I" P 1 1 \ ^^^ 

Fruit & Tree V L L II V y TBFES, 

425 Washington St,, nearly opposite Post Office, San Francisco. 

8^ Send for 32 page Catalogue."^ 

W. R. STRONG & CO., 

FIELD, GARDEN, LAWN and TREE 

S EED S. 

Our stock is full, fresh and reliable. In these essential particulars we claim 
to be unexcelled. 

We have largely increased our list of varieties, having imported from the 
very best growers, both in the East and Europe, GARDEN and FLOWER SEEDS, 
put up in small packages for the RETAIL TRADE, as also in bulk. All DEAL- 
ERS IN SEEDS will find it for their interest to send their orders to us. We 
make specialties of Alfalfa, Red Clover, Timotliy, Red Top, Ken- 
tucky Blue Grass, Hungarian Grass, Millet, Lawn Grasses, Etc. 
Also, Flowering Bulbs of every description. 

8^ Catalogues furnished free on application. „^ 



We also do a 

WHOLESALE COMMISSION BUSINESS, 

Handling all kinds of California Green and Dried Fruits, Nuts, Honey and Gen- 
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Address, W. R. STRONG & CO., 

Nos. 6, 8 & 10 J St., Sacramento, Cal. 



Felix Gillet's Nursery, Nevada City, Cal. 




Proeparturiens Walnut 



Medlar, or Mespilus Germanica. 
I offer for sale Trees of the following varieties of fruit introduced 
by me in California, and most all in full bearing on my grounds, viz: 
The most precocious of all soft-shell varieties of Walnut, bearing 
even when three years old. Hardy, a late bloomer and very produc- 
tive. (First bearing trees in California at Felix Gillet's Nursery, 
Nevada City ; fourth crop, 1878.) 1-year and 3 year-old Trees for sale. 

One-year-old Trees sent by Mail at Catalogue Prices, in 2 feet long 
packages. Roots, 12 inches; Stalk, 12 inches. Late or Sorotina 
Walnut, After Saint John Walnut, JMarron De Lyon Chestnut, Marrun 
Combale Chestnut, Black Mulberry of Spain, Persimmons, Sorbus 
and Cornus, Italian, Spanish and English Filberts. 

Medlar Monstrueuse, the largest of all Medlars. Standard Trees 
budded on the White Thorn, 5 to 6 feet high, and ready to bear. 

Also, over One Hundred varieties of Fruits of all kind.s, many of 
them introduced in California for the first time, by the undersigned, 
including Cherries, Pears, Plums, Apples, Apricots, Figs, Peaches, 
Gooseberries, Etc, 

30 Varieties of Grapes, 

40 Varieties of Strawberries (French, English and American), with 
full description on Catalogue of 17 Varieties carefully selected from 
64 Varieties tried on my place these last nine years. 

SM" Send for Descriptive Catalogue and Price List. This Catalogue contains 
besides a minute description of each Variety of Fruit, practical hints on the cul- 
ture and propagation of each sort, with figures on annular and whistle budding 
for Walnut and Chestnut, and grafting by ai)proach for the Grape. 

FELIX GILLET. Nevada City, Cal. 



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